Coprosma serrulata
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Low growing sprawling shrub with pairs of leathery leaves which have the veins sunken into the upper surface and a finely notched margin (lens needed) inhabiting mountain areas of the South Island. Leaves 4-7cm long, rounded. Several small dark teeth on stem between leaf bases. Fruit red.
Flower colours
Green
Detailed description
Erect to depressed bushy shrub up to 1 × 1 m tall; branches very stout though pliant, spreading, with white papery bark falling in flakes; branchlets rather stout, glabrous. Leaves on coriaceous winged petioles 10-15 mm long. Stipules broadly deltoid to subtruncate, glabrescent; denticles prominent 10-12 of more or less equal size, pale green to more or less colourless. Lamina somewhat cartilaginous, thick and coriaceous, 40-70 × 25-40 mm, subrotund to broad-obovate or obovate-oblong; apex rounded to subtruncate, mucronate; dark green, somewhat rugulose above, paler below; margins crenulate-serrulate. Reticulated veins evident on both surfaces. Male flowers several together on very short axillary peduncles; calyx 0; corolla subcampanulate, lobes 4-5, oblong-triangular, acuminate, ciliolate; stamens 4-6. Female flowers solitary on short axillary peduncles; calyx truncate, teeth 2; corolla tubular, lobes narrow-triangular, acute to subacuminate, < tube. Drupe 7-8 mm long, red, broad-oblong.
Similar taxa
Coprosma serrulata is not likely to be confused with any other Coprosma species. The large, thick, leathery leaves with their finely crenulate-serrulate leaf margins are quite unlike any other Coprosma species.
Distribution
Endemic. South Island: Marlborough and North-west Nelson south
Habitat
Montane to lower subalpine. Clearings within forest, in shrubland, grassland, herbfield and at the base of talus slopes and screes amongst boulders. Usually found growing amongst other lower growing shrubs and grasses.
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
Genus
Family
Synonyms
None (first described in 1871)
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
September - October
Fruiting
April - July
Life cycle and dispersal
Fleshy drupes are dispersed by frugivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Easily grown from fresh seed and semi-hardwood cuttings but slow growing and intolerant of warm or humid conditions. Does best in a cool, south facing situation planted amongst rocks in a deep, fertile free draining soil. An attractive species that is sadly not often seen in cultivation
Other information
Cultivation
Occasionally offered by specialist native plant nurseries.
Etymology
coprosma: From the Greek kopros ‘dung’ and osme ‘smell’, referring to the foul smell of the species, literally ‘dung smell’
serrulata: Rough edged
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.
COPSER
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
Otago: 2024 | Regionally Not Threatened
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, Government Printer, Wellington.
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
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.