Synaphea

Abstract: Synaphea xela R. Butcher is described here as new and differentiated from similar species and regional congeners. Synaphea xela is restricted to the Jurien-Eneabba area of Western Australia and is currently known from only three populations over an area of approximately 55 km2. A Conservation Code of Priority Two is considered appropriate for this species based on the paucity of collections and the high level of species endemism in this region.

Abstract: The Swan Coastal Plain of south-west Western Australia has been extensively cleared since European settlement, with the fertile Pinjarra Plain land system preferentially cleared for grazing; what remains of the native vegetation is of high conservation value despite being highly fragmented and often degraded. The following six taxa of Synaphea R.Br. (Proteaceae), with conservation status corresponding to IUCN Red List categories Threatened and Data Deficient, are restricted to vegetation remnants in this region: S. stenoloba A.S.George, S. odocoileops A.S.George, S. sp. Pinjarra (R. Davis 6578), S. sp. Fairbridge Farm (D. Papenfus 696), S. sp. Pinjarra Plain (A.S. George 17182) and S. sp. Serpentine (G.R. Brand 103). Taxonomic boundaries among these morphologically similar taxa of Synaphea were investigated using morphometric analyses based on characters of leaves, inflorescences, flowers and fruits. Results allow the circumscription of the four informally named taxa from this complex, which will enable their formal description in a subsequent publication. They also provide support for several morphologically closely related taxa, including the provisional distinction of S. sp. Udumung (A.S. George 17058) from close ally S. decorticans Lindl. Two described species (S. odocoileops and S. stenoloba) and several anomalous specimens could not be adequately resolved in these analyses, and further investigation of their boundaries using molecular markers is required.

Abstract: Butcher, R. Four new conservation-listed species of Synaphea (Proteaceae: Conospermineae) from the Jarrah Forest region of south-west Western Australia. Nuytsia 17: 97–116 (2007). The new species described here are a diverse assemblage of taxa, united in this paper by their geographical occurrence within the Jarrah Forest region of south-west Western Australia and a pressing need to formalise the description of conservation taxa in this State. The taxa have complex taxonomic associations within the groups to which they belong, with intergradation in many characters evident between species. The new species described herein are S. diabolica R.Butcher, S. pandurata R.Butcher, S. polypodioides R.Butcher and S. trinacriformis R.Butcher. A distribution map, image and discussion of affinities are provided for each taxon.