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  4. Myosotis macrantha

Myosotis macrantha

A close up from Livingstone Mountains.<br>Photographer: Mike Thorsen, Licence: All rights reserved. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
flower, Harris Saddle area, 1500m.<br>Photographer: Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
East Ahuriri.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Hector Mountains.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Cyme - East Ahuriri.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Myosotis macrantha.<br>Photographer: Alastair Robertson, Licence: All rights reserved.
Mount Cook National Park. Jan 1978.<br>Photographer: Jeremy R. Rolfe, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Harris Mts.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Harris Mts.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Harris Saddle area, 1500m.<br>Photographer: Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Mt Alba,Western Otago.<br>Photographer: Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Date taken: 28/02/2013, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Birch Hill Stream, Mt Cook, February.<br>Photographer: John Smith-Dodsworth, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>.
Myosotis macrantha.<br>Photographer: Alastair Robertson, Licence: All rights reserved.
Lake Peel, Cobb, January.<br>Photographer: John Smith-Dodsworth, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>.
Eyre Mountains.<br>Photographer: Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Date taken: 28/02/2013, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
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Common names

bronze forget-me-not

Biostatus

Native – Endemic taxon

Category

Vascular

Structural class

Herbs - Dicotyledons other than Composites

Flower colours

Orange, Yellow

Detailed description

Robust, tufted, grey-green, green to dark green, perennial herb. Rosettes few or many, leaves obovate, obovate-lanceolate to lanceolate-spathulate, 30-120 × 6-20 mm, narrowing rather abruptly to subacute tip and gradually to broad petiole almost as long as lamina; hairs tapering and flexuous, appressed or spreading, on undersurface shorter, sparser, often appressed, retrorse except sts at tip. Lateral branches few per rosette, ascending to erect, up to 300 mm long, internodes usually < leaves. Stem-leaves decreasing upwards, lower ones oblong, uppermost c.20 × 6 mm, lanceolate with truncate base and subacute tip; hairs long, fine, usually crowded and appressed on upper surface, on undersurface sparser, shorter and more spreading, often retrorse towards base of lower stem-leaves. Cymes ebracteate, usually simple or once branched, 8-flowered, up to 70 mm long in fruit, internodes < calyx in fruit; pedicels very short, Calyx 6-9 mm long, lobes usually slightly > 1/2 length, obtuse, rather broad; hairs long and spreading near top, medium and hooked about middle, short and spreading or retrorse near base, short appressed hairs throughout. Corolla yellow, orange, brownish orange to almost black, narrow-funnelform, 6-8 mm diameter, tube up to 10 mm. (occasionally 15 mm) to level of scales, more to sinus of lobes; scales small or absent, sometimes variously developed in one flower, lobes rounded, c.3.0 × 2.5 mm, not widely spreading; filaments broad, fixed just below scales (if any), about equal to anthers which are 1·5-2·2 mm long and wholly above scale-level; style at least 2× calyx in fruit, stigma capitate. Nutlet 2.4-3.5 × 1.4-2.0 mm long, ovate-elliptic to elliptic, black-brown to black.

Similar taxa

Myosotis macrantha is a rather variable but extremely distinctive species easily recognised by its robust growth habit and colourful flowers which can be fixed or grade on a plant from yellow through orange to orange-brown or almost black. It is closely allied to Myosotis arnoldii from which it differs by the grey-green, green to dark green (rather than silvery) colour of the vegetative parts, by the rosette leaves which are broader than the stem leaves (in M. arnoldii rosette and stem leaves are of equal width), and by the presence of retrorse rather than straight hairs on the leaves. The flowers of Myosotis macrantha differ from M. arnoldii only in that their lobes seem to spread more widely (and they show a greater range of colours). Vegetatively Myosotis macrantha is impossible to distinguish from the narrow-range endemic M. explanata though the long narrow strongly coloured flowers of M. macrantha with the anthers exserted wholly beyond the ill-developed scales differ greatly from the shorter, salverform, pure white flowers of M. explanata whose anthers are scarcely exserted and whose filaments are positioned below the large scales.

Distribution

Endemic: South Island: Nelson to south-western Otago and northern Southland

Habitat

Alpine. Common in damp sites within grassland, on rocky ground, on cliff faces and rock outcrops

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

Jump to previous conservation statuses

Detailed taxonomy

Family

Boraginaceae

Authority

Myosotis macrantha (Hook.f.) Benth. et Hook.f.

Synonyms

Exarrhena macrantha Hook.f., Myosotis macrantha var. diversa G.Simpson et J.S.Thomson, Myosotis macrantha var. pulchra Cheeseman, Myosotis macrantha var. westlandica Petrie

Endemic taxon

Yes

Endemic genus

No

Endemic family

No

Ecology

Flowering

December - March

Fruiting

Febuary - May

Propagation technique

Somewhat difficult. Can be grown in a rock garden or alpine house but results vary. Like all indigenous Myosotis this species is sensitive to humidity and prone to fungal attacks from mildews and rusts in muggy weather. In some parts of New Zealand, such as the South Island this species can be easily cultivated.

Other information

Etymology

myosotis: Mouse-eared

macrantha: Big flowered

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.

MYOMAC

Chromosome number

2n = 48

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

Jump to current conservation status

Regional conservation statuses

Otago: 2024 | At Risk – Regionally Declining | Qualifiers: DPS, NStr, Sp, TL

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. Goverment Printer, Wellington.

Attribution

Fact Sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 1 February 2008; 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.

NZPCN Fact Sheet citation

Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Myosotis macrantha Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/myosotis-macrantha/ (Date website was queried)

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