Azorella pallida
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Herbs - Dicotyledons other than Composites
Flower colours
Green, Yellow
Detailed description
Bright green to yellow-green, glabrous, creeping, perennial herb from dense to diffuse patches 0.2-1 m diameter. Stems slender, much branched, usually arching and rooting at nodes. Leaves crowded at nodes and toward branch and stem apices. Petioles up to 50 mm long, slender, somewhat wiry, bright green; stipules deeply laciniate. Leaves up to 20 mm diameter, 3-foliolate or deeply 3-partite, membranous, pale green, bright green to yellow-green, upper surface very glossy undersides less so; leaflets obovate-cuneate, apices with 3-6 rouned to obtuse lobes. Peduncles up to 5 mm long. Umbels 4-12-flowered, simple (rarely with the inflorescence axis bearing up to more or less evenly spaced 4 umbels), sometimes with 2-3 long-pedicelled secondary umbels from base of primary; secondary umbels often umbellulate. Pedicels sometimes replaced by leaf-like bracts or small leaves. Involucral bracts linear to narrow-lanceolate, acute or obtuse. Petals greenish-yellow to cream. Schizocarp tetragonous; mericarps 4-ribbed, 1.8-2.3 mm long, dull brown, dark brown, red-brown or dark purple-brown,ovate, broadly ovate, broadly obovate, elliptic-ovate or elliptic-oblong.
Similar taxa
The bright green, yellow-green to pale-green colouration, obtuse ended involucral bracts, and membranous 3-foliolate to 3-partite leaves distinguish this species from all other indigenous Schizeilema. The schizocarp of Schizeilema is the best quick way to distinguish the genus from the superficially similar Hydrocotyle L. In Schizeilema the mericarps are terete or dorsally compressed while those of Hydrocotyle are laterally strongly compressed and are usually asymmetric with a flattened ventral and a rounded dorsal surface.
Distribution
Endemic, South Island easterly from Marlborough to Canterbury
Habitat
Montane to subalpine (400-1400 m a.s.l.). In damp sites within forest, shrubland, grassland and herbfield, often along stream sides and lake margins.
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.
Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – these interim threat classification statuses has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.
- 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 – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: Sp
Threats
Not threatened. An apparently widespread and at times locally common though mostly sparsely distributed species.
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Apiaceae
Synonyms
Pozoa pallida Kirk, Schizeilema pallidum (Kirk) Domin
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
December - February
Fruiting
January - March
Propagation technique
Easily grown from rooted pieces and fresh seed. An attractive bright-green to yellow-green creeping plant for sunny or shaded damp places. Does not tolerate much humidity and should not be allowed to dry out.
Other information
Where To Buy
Not commercially available.
Etymology
pallida: From the Latin pallidus ‘pale or pallid’
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.
AZOPAL
Previous conservation statuses
2017 | Data Deficient | Qualifiers: Sp
2012 | Data Deficient | Qualifiers: Sp
2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: DP
2004 | Sparse
Referencing and citations
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by P.J. de Lange for NZPCN (1 June 2013)
NZPCN Fact Sheet citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Azorella pallida Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/azorella-pallida/ (Date website was queried)