Bulbinella gibbsii var. gibbsii
Common names
Gibbs’s Māori onion, Gibbs’s lily, Gibbs’s onion
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Herbs - Monocots
Flower colours
Yellow
Detailed description
Subdioecious, diminutive, summer green, fleshy, lily up to 300 mm tall. Leaves up to 30 mm wide, strap-like, reddish green to dark green, fleshy. Peduncle mostly shorter than raceme. Raceme mostly conical (rarely cylindric), the axis visible between flowers. Pedicels 10–20 mm long, swollen below flower, elongating slightly after anthesis. Bracts long-acuminate, notably longer than pedicel in flowering and fruiting material. Flowers 10–14 mm diameter, dark yellow, numerous, densely crowded; tepals patent, becoming erect and hardening as fruit matures. Stamens 6, < tepals; anthers mostly well filled with pollen. Ovary not stipitate. Capsules broad-ovoid. Seeds dark and narrowly winged.
Similar taxa
Allied to Bulbinella rossii (Hook.f.) Cheeseman which is a much more robust species (up to 1 m tall) endemic to the Auckland Islands and Campbell Island/Motu Ihupuku. Bulbinella rossii has consistently cylindrical racemes. The axis is very stout and more or less obscured by the densely crowded, distinctly dioecious flowers. The stigma is prominently capitate. Bulbinella gibbsii var. balanifera L.B.Moore is a larger plant than var. gibbsii with longer peduncles and pedicels. The pedicels greatly exceed the subtending bracts. The ovary and capsules are barrel-shaped rather than broadly ovoid, with bases that only gradually narrow and which are scarcely stipitate. Bulbinella gibbsii var. balanifera is found in the North Island and South Island but not on Stewart Island/Rakiura.
Distribution
Endemic. Stewart Island/Rakiura.
Habitat
Coastal to alpine (mainly alpine) in damp ground, in cushion bogs and seepages, sometimes fringing ponds and small ephemeral pools.
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 – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: RR
Threats
No apparent threats. Listed because it occupies a small geograpgic area.
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Synonyms
None
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
January–February
Fruiting
February–March
Propagation technique
Difficult–should not be removed from the wild. Has been cultivated with limited success in the more southerly parts of the country.
Wetland plant indicator status rating
Information derived from the revised national wetland plant list prepared to assist councils in delineating and monitoring wetlands (Clarkson et al., 2021 Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Contract Report LC3975 for Hawke’s Bay Regional Council). The national plant list categorises plants by the extent to which they are found in wetlands and not ‘drylands’. The indicator status ratings are OBL (obligate wetland), FACW (facultative wetland), FAC (facultative), FACU (facultative upland), and UPL (obligate upland). If you have suggestions for the Wetland Indicator Status Rating, please contact: [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]
FACW: Facultative Wetland
Usually is a hydrophyte but occasionally found in uplands (non-wetlands).
Other information
Etymology
bulbinella: Little bulb
gibbsii: Named in honor of Frederick G Gibbs (1866-1953)
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.
BULGVG
Chromosome number
2n = 14
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 – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: RR
2012 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon
2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon
2004 | Range Restricted
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Moore LB, Edgar E. 1970. Flora of New Zealand, Volume II. Indigenous Tracheophyta: Monocotyledones except Gramineae. Government Printer, Wellington, NZ. 354 p.
Attribution
Description modified from Moore and Edgar (1970).
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.