Banksia epica is a shrub that grows on the south coast of Western Australia. It was probably seen by Edward John Eyre in 1841, but was not collected until 1973. It is known only from two isolated populations in the remote south east of the state, near the western edge of the Great Australian Bight.
About Banksia epica in brief
Banksia epica is a shrub that grows on the south coast of Western Australia. A spreading bush with wedge-shaped serrated leaves and large creamy-yellow flower spikes, it grows up to 3½ metres high. It is known only from two isolated populations in the remote south east of the state, near the western edge of the Great Australian Bight. One of the most recently described Banksia species, it was probably seen by Edward John Eyre in 1841, but was not collected until 1973. It was only recognised as a distinct species in 1988. There has been very little research on the species since then, so knowledge of its ecology and cultivation potential is limited. The first European to see B. epica was probably EdwardJohn Eyre, the first explorer of the area, who recorded specimens of Banksia as he was nearing the western end of the Bight on 1 May 1841. On 22 October 1973, Ernest Charles Nelson visited Toolinna Cove to collect specimens for a taxonomic revision of Adenanthos Adenos. Nelson incorrectly identified a specimen of B epica in October 1973 as B. media, but it was made clear that it was B. epica. B.epica is similar in appearance to its close relative B. media, from which it differs in having slightly shorter leaves and larger flowers.
In addition, the persistent flower parts on B. epica’s fruiting structures are curled and point upwards, whereas they are straight and point downwards on B media. The fruiting structure is a stout woody cone embedded with up to 50 follicles; old withered flower parts persist on the follicles, giving them a hairy appearance. The follicles have an attractive purple hue. The style ends of the style ends are initially trapped inside the upper perianth parts, but break free at anthesis. In bud, it may have green-grey or brownish pollen presenters, not unlike B robur. Each flower consists of a tubular peranth made up of four fused tepals, and one long wiry style. It has grey, fissured bark, and dark green, wedge- shaped leaves, 1 1⁄2 to 5 centimetres long and 6 to 15 millimetre wide, with serrated margins. Both populations occur among coastal heath on cliff-top dunes of siliceous sand. Both have a form that accords with Eyre’s description of the country, and it is impossible to determine what species it is.
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This page is based on the article Banksia epica published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 06, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
