Coprosma cuneata
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Shrub with many clusters of small dark green narrow leaves that are dented at the tip on very short side branches. Leaves curved, 9-16mm long by 2mm wide, widest at tip, with a tuft of small hairs between the base of the pairs of leaves. Fruit red, persisting.
Flower colours
Green
Detailed description
Slender shrub up to 1 m tall, flattened or sprawling in exposed sites. Branches flexible, with dark to very dark brown bark; branchlets usually finely pubescent when young. Leaves usually in rather distant pairs or fascicles, petioles very slender, 1–2–(3) mm long. Stipules oblong-triangular, subacute to obtuse, pubescent, ciliate, with apical tuft of long hairs. Lamina subcoriaceous, glabrous, linear to very narrow-cuneate, more or less curved, truncate to obtuse, more or less retuse, sometimes mucronulate, (6)–10–16 × (0.5)–2–(3) mm. Midrib evident below, usually impressed above. Flowers unisexual. Male flower solitary or 2–4 together, terminal on short branchlets, calyx not present; corolla funnelform, tube more or less equal to narrow acute lobes. Female flower solitary, terminal; calyx-teeth very short; corolla narrow-funnelform, lobes narrow, acute, more or less equal to tube. Drupe clear red, globose, 3–5 mm diameter.
Similar taxa
Coprosma cheesemanii has pointed leaves and pale bark.
Coprosma crenulata has much more leathery, broader leaves, light grey bark, and short 3-toothed stipules.
Coprosma microcarpa lacks the indented leaf tips and has small white fruit.
Coprosma linariifolia has distinctive long-sheathing stipules, unique from any other small-leaved forms of that species, and also has pointed leaves, and fruit that is white. or white sprinkled with blue-black flecks.
Coprosma acerosa and its relatives all lack the indented leaf tips and have fruit coloured bright blue, rarely white, often flecked with darker blue.
Distribution
South Island, Stewart Island/Rakiura, Auckland Islands, and Campbell Island/Motu Ihupuku.
Habitat
Lowland to subalpine forest, scrub and shrubland, 0–1000 m.
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 | Not Threatened
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Synonyms
Coprosma astonii Petrie
Taxonomic notes
In the past, South Island and Stewart Island/Rakiura plants were known as Coprosma astonii, but they are not specifically distinct from those further south.
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
September–October
Fruiting
(December)–January–May
Life cycle and dispersal
Fleshy drupes are dispersed by frugivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Other information
Etymology
coprosma: From the Greek kopros ‘dung’ and osme ‘smell’, referring to the foul smell of the species, literally ‘dung smell’
cuneata: From the Latin cuneum ‘wedge’, meaning wedge-shaped
Manaaki Whenua Online Interactive Key
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.
COPCUN
Chromosome number
2n = 44
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 | Not Threatened
2012 | Not Threatened
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Regional conservation statuses
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.
Otago: 2024 | Regionally Not Threatened | Qualifiers: TL
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Allan HH. 1961. Flora of New Zealand, Volume I. Indigenous Tracheophyta: Psilopsida, Lycopsida, Filicopsida, Gymnospermae, Dicotyledones. Government Printer, Wellington, NZ. 1085 p.
Thorsen MJ, Dickinson KJM, Seddon PJ. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285–309.
Wilson HD, Galloway T. 1993. Small-leaved shrubs of New Zealand. Manuka Press, Christchurch, NZ. 305 p.
Attribution
Description adapted by M. Ward from Allan (1961) and Wilson & Galloway (1993).
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.