Acanthaceae
Justicia

Justicia exigua S.Moore

First published in J. Bot. 38: 204 (1900)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Ethiopia to Limpopo. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Flora Zambesiaca Acanthaceae (part 2) by Iain Darbyshire, Kaj Vollesen and Ensermu Kelbessa

Morphology General Habit
Annual herb with much-branched erect, ascending or decumbent (then often rooting) stems to 45 cm long; stems bifariously puberulous and with few to many long broad curly many-celled hairs to 2 mm long.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves glabrous or with scattered long broad curly many-celled hairs along midrib, more rarely also on lamina and edges towards base; petiole 1–7 mm long; lamina elliptic or narrowly so, widest near middle, largest 0.8–3.8(5) × 0.3–1.5(2.5) cm; apex subacute to broadly rounded; base cuneate to attenuate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Spikes 3–6(7)-flowered; peduncle 0.2–2.5 cm long, bifariously puberulous or sparsely so and (towards base) often with long broad curly many-celled hairs; rachis 0.5–2.2 cm long, bifariously puberulous or sparsely so; bracts and bracteoles subulate to linear, 0.5–1.5 mm long, glabrous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx glabrous; lobes linear, two lower 2–4 mm long, three upper 3–6 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla white with faint pink to mauve 'herring-bones' on lower lip and two pink lines on upper lip, 3.5–5 mm long; tube 1.5–2.5 mm long; upper lip 2–3 mm long; lower lip 2.5–3.5 mm long, middle lobe 1.5–2.5 × 1.5–2 mm.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Filaments 1.5–2 mm long; anthers c.1 mm long, thecae c.0.5 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsule 4–6 mm long, with scattered hairs in apical half (rarely almost to base), sometimes with purple lines and patches.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds c.1 mm in diameter.
Distribution
Also in Sudan, Ethiopia, D.R. Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Angola, Namibia, South Africa.
Ecology
In a wide variety of woodland, bushland and grassland, often in disturbed or secondary vegetation or as a weed in cultivated areas, on a wide range of soils; 40–1500 m.
Conservation
Conservation notes: Widespread; not threatened.
[FZ]

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]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • 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 2024. 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 2024. 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

  • Plants and People Africa

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
    • © Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/