Amaranthaceae
Atriplex

Atriplex nummularia Lindl.

First published in T.L.Mitchell, J. Exped. Trop. Australia: 64 (1848)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Australia. It is a shrub and grows primarily in the desert or dry shrubland biome.

Descriptions

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Ghazanfar, S. A. & Edmondson, J. R (Eds). (2016) Flora of Iraq, Volume 5 Part 1: Elatinaceae to Sphenocleaceae.

Morphology General Habit
Woody, much-branched dioecious shrub up to 3 m
Morphology Leaves
Leaves (including petiole) 3–5 × 2–5.5 cm, ovate-deltoid or orbicular, often some broader than long, entire or sinuate-dentate, sessile or petiolate (petiole 5–10 mm), long cuneate at base, obtuse or emarginate at apex
sex Male
Male inflorescences leafless or with short bracts, very branched, panicle-like; female flowers in leafy or bracteose clusters
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Valves 4–7 × 3–8 mm, semiorbicular, rounded-cordate, erose- dentate, in central and lower parts slightly spongy and hardened, smooth or with small outgrowths at back.
Ecology
Cultivated and escaping from cultivation in semi-deserts and similar places; alt. to 300 m;
Phenology
Flowering: Apr.–Jun.
Distribution
Iraq: Upper Mesopotamian plain. Native to W and S Australia, New South Wales and Victoria.
Recognition
This shrubby and strongly woody species differs from A. halimus for instance in its dioecious character, leafy female inflorescences and (not rare) valves having appendages on their surface.
[FIQ]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Iraq

    • Ghazanfar, S. A., Edmondson, J. R. (Eds). (2013-2019). Flora of Iraq, Volumes 5.1, 5.2 and 6.0. Kew Publishing
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images