Alepis flavida
Common names
Yellow mistletoe, pirita, piriraki
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Semi-parasitic shrub mainly on outer branches of beech trees. Obvious when in flower or from flowers fallen to ground. Leaves oval, dull green and with a reddish margin. Flowers tubular, orange-yellow, in small clusters.
Flower colours
Orange, Yellow
Detailed description
This species is a shrub that can grow up to 2 m across. It has leathery leaves that are 2-6cm long, narrow and dull green with deciduous tip. The leaves sit in pairs on opposite sides of the stem and are thick and fleshy with a matt surface. The margins of the leaves are red and are rough to touch. Veins are visible on the lower surface of the leaves. Its flowers are small with orange-yellow to yellow tepals that open right back. The fruit are small, shiny, translucent oval berries (approximately 4-5mm long) and ripen to yellow or gold although fruit have been recorded as yellow, green and orange on herbarium sheets at the Landcare herbarium in Lincoln (CHR).
Similar taxa
Peraxilla colensoi, P. tetrapetala. Alepis flavida has disc-like attachment structures and oblong leaves with red margins. The plant grows in the outer branches of its host. Peraxilla colensoi and P. tetrapetala are more leafy, have red flowers, round or diamond-shaped leaves with no red margin. They have different attachment structures and usually grow on the trunks of the host tree.
Distribution
North Island and South Island, New Zealand
Habitat
Its host is most commonly mountain or black beech but it has been recorded on 13 species, all indigenous to New Zealand. In North Island the species is dispersed by bellbird (Anthonis melanura). It has never been common in the North Island.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: CD, DPS, DPT
Threats
Animal pests (including possums), fire, collectors, destruction of habitat and hosts, vegetation succession, fungal diseases.
Detailed taxonomy
Genus
Family
Synonyms
Elytranthe flavida (Hook.f.) Engl. Loranthus flavidus Hook. F.
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
Yes
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
December to February.
Fruiting
Fruiting from January.
Life cycle and dispersal
Fleshy berries dispersed by fruigivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Other information
Extra information
Story in Trilepidea Issue 31 (June 2006) about rediscovery of Alepis flavida in Wellington.
Plant of the Month
This plant has been featured as a Plant of the Month – see Trilepidea: NZPCN newsletter for December 2013 for the full story.
Etymology
flavida: Pale yellow
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
ALEFLA
Chromosome number
2n = 24
Previous conservation statuses
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2017 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: CD
2012 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: CD
2009 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: CD
2004 | Gradual Decline
Regional conservation statuses
Otago: 2024 | Threatened – Regionally Vulnerable | Qualifiers: CD, DPS, PF, Sp
The regional threat classification system leverages off the national assessments in the NZTCS, providing information relevant for the regional context. Otago conservation status information is sourced from the “Regional conservation status of indigenous vascular plants in Otago” Jarvie S et al. (2024) report.
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Allan, H.H. 1961: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. I. Wellington, Government Printer
Thorsen, M. J.; Dickinson, K. J. M.; Seddon, P. J. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285-309
Attribution
Fact Sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 1 August 2003. Description based on Allan (1961).
Some of this factsheet information is derived from Flora of New Zealand Online and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand licence.