Phylloglossum drummondii
Biostatus
Native
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Lycophytes (clubmosses, selaginella, quillworts)
Detailed description
Bright yellow to yellow–green, fleshy, tufted, seasonal plant arising from a small white to pale pink ovoid to ellipsoid tuber. Plants 15–50 mm tall. Tuber 3–4 mm long, ovoid, white usually subtended by a smaller developing daughter tuber. Stem 6–9 mm, erect, mostly subterranean. Roots 1–2, fleshy, white. Leaves tufted and clustered in a rosette, fleshy, erect or spreading, 4.0–30.0 × 0.5–1.2 mm, linear, acute, terete. Fertile stem solitary; peduncle 10–50 mm tall, white, fleshy; strobilus erect, 4–10 mm; sporophylls 2–3 × 1–2 mm, ovate-triangular, acute to attenuate,. Sporangium attached to sporophyll base, 1.0–1.5 × 1.0–1.5 mm, reniform, at first pale yellow maturing cream.
Similar taxa
None.
Distribution
Indigenous. North Island, South Island. In the South Island it is only known from very old gatherings made from Marlborough and Banks Peninsula. It is now regarded as extinct at both locations. In the North Island it was once found from Te Paki south to the northern Waikato. It is now only known from scattered sites between the Surville Cliffs and Dargaville. Common in Australia.
Habitat
Coastal to lowland sites. Most often found on recently burned ground, often in gumland scrub, or overlying other similarly low, open vegetation such as that developed on clay pans and acidic soils. Also found on ultramafic soils, and heavily weathered and/or podzolised sandstones.
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 | Threatened – Nationally Endangered | Qualifiers: DPS, DPT, EF, PD, SO
Threats
This species has declined markedly as a consequence of the conversion of its preferred gumland scrub habitat to farmland, or through the loss of these habitats as a consequence of natural succession. Plants have also been lost through over collection in some smaller, vulnerable populations.
Detailed taxonomy
Genus
Family
Synonyms
Lycopodium sanguisorba Spring
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Life cycle and dispersal
The sterile blades appear in July and may persist until November (though they have usually dried off by late October). Fertile cones are produced one or two per tuft from about August to October.
Propagation technique
Difficult. Should not be removed from the wild.
Other information
Where To Buy
Not commercially available.
Plant of the Month
This plant has been featured as a Plant of the Month – see Trilepidea: NZPCN newsletter for February 2024 for the full story.
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.
PHYDRU
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 | Threatened – Nationally Endangered | Qualifiers: DP, EF, PD, SO
2012 | Threatened – Nationally Critical | Qualifiers: EF, SO
2009 | Threatened – Nationally Critical | Qualifiers: SO, EF
2004 | Threatened – Nationally Endangered
Regional conservation statuses
Auckland: 2025 | Regionally Extirpated
The regional threat classification system leverages off the national assessments in the NZTCS, providing information relevant for the regional context. Auckland conservation status information is sourced from the “Conservation status of vascular plant species in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland” Simpkins E et al. (2025) report.
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Bartlett B. 1944. Eucamptodon and Phylloglossum drummondii. Auckland Botancal Society Journal 1: 4–5.
Braggins J. 1974. Phylloglossum miniature denizen of the North. Wellington Botanical Society Bulletin 38: 28–34.
Chinnock RJ. 1998. Lycopodiaceae. Flora of Australia 48, Ferns Gymnosperms and allied groups: 66–85. ABRS/CSIRO Victoria, Australia.
Attribution
Fact Sheet Prepared by P.J. de Lange (1 November 2009). Description based on Chinnock (1998).