Korthalsella lindsayi
Common names
leafless mistletoe, dwarf mistletoe
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Dense mass of flattened beaded succulent stems to 10cm long growing on twigs of another plant. Leaves (flattened stems) 5-12mm long by 3-9mm wide, widest towards upper middle. Flowers tiny, fruit small, green, on short spike.
Distribution
Endemic. North Island and South Island. In the North Island generally uncommon from Pureora south to about the Hawke’s Bay and Wairarapa, there after abundant. In the South Island throughout, though apparently more common in the east.
Habitat
Coastal to subalpine but more usually found in lowland and coastal situations. Usually associated with lowland alluvial and coastal forest. Parasitising a diverse range of shrubs, trees and vines with not clear host preference evident, though regional patterns may exist (this needs further study).
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
Viscum lindsayi D.Oliver, Heterixia lindsayi Tiegh nom. illeg., Korthalsella lindsayi (Oliv.) Endl. var. lindsayi
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
October - March
Fruiting
October - June
Life cycle and dispersal
Fleshy berries are dispersed by ballistic projection, attachment and possibly frugivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Difficult - should not be removed from the wild
Other information
Where To Buy
Not commercially available.
Etymology
korthalsella: After Korthals, botanist
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.
KORLIN
Chromosome number
2n = 28
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
Nickrent, D.L.; Malécot, V.; Vidal-Russell, R.; Der, J.P. 2010: A revised classification of Santalales. Taxon 59: 538-558.
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