Coprosma depressa
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Flattened low-growing sprawling small-leaved shrub of open upland areas. Leaves narrow, 5-9mm long, in clusters of pairs, tip curled under and with very small hairs (lens needed), leaf pairs joined at base with a thin very short fringed thin sheath. Fruit red.
Flower colours
Green
Detailed description
Prostrate up to 0.3 m (usually less), with long slender rooting, criss-crossing, branches. Branchlets finely pubescent. Leaves fresh green, on petioles 2-4 mm long. Stipules rather large, pale, long-triangular, more or less pubescent, ciliate; sheath short, whitish. Lamina coriaceous, broad-ovate, obtuse to subobtuse, (5-) 7-9 x 1-3 (-5) mm. Midrib and usually a few secondary veins evident, at least below, apex blunt and turned down. Flowers solitary, terminal on short branchlets. Male flower without calyx; corolla funnelform, lobes acutely ovate, more or less equal to tube. Female flower with narrow-triangular, acute calyx-teeth; corolla with narrow-triangular acute lobes. Drupe bright red occasionally orange-red, globose, 5-6 mm diameter.
Similar taxa
In general, no other species has both a low sprawling habit and large whitish stipules.
Coprosma crenulata has glossier, larger, more leathery leaves with more obviously indented leaf tips, and short, thick. denticle-tipped stipules.
Other species which may sprawl in similar fashion (C. cheesemanii, C. cuneata) have much narrower leaves.
Distribution
North, South and Stewart Islands. Widespread from Hikurangi southwards.
Habitat
Montane to Low Alpine, 600-1300 m. On well-drained or rocky sites, often trailing over or around boulders.
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 ramulosa Petrie, Coprosma pubens Petrie
Taxonomic notes
In Allan (1961) it is noted that when Wild and Zotov record their observations “on the incidence of abnormal, irregular, and the hermaphrodite flowers … assuming always that the normal plant is dioecious.” Comparatively slight irregularities were found in Coprosma depressa.
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
December
Fruiting
January-March
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’
depressa: From the Latin depremere ‘to press down’, meaning to be flattened vertically, often referring to a plant’s habit
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.
COPDEP
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
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Allan, H. H. 1961. Flora of New Zealand. Vol. 1. Wellington: Government Printer. pg. 569, 587.
Mark, A. F. 2012. Above the Treeline: A Nature Guide to Alpine New Zealand. Craig Potton Publishing, Nelson. pg. 169.
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.
Wilson, H. D., & Galloway, T. 1993. Small-leaved shrubs of New Zealand. Manuka Press. pg. 116-118.
Attribution
Description adapted by M. Ward from Allan (1961), Mark (2012), 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.