Flora of New Zealand Series

Ileostylus micranthus (Hook. f.) Tiegh. in Bull. Soc. bot. Fr. 41, 1894, 489.

Viscum antarcticum A. Cunn. in Ann. nat. Hist. 2, 1839, 208 non Forst. f. Prodr. 1786, 70.

Type locality: Head of Ruamahanga River. Type: K, Colenso 1968, sent as "Viscum heterophyllum n. sp."

Bushy glab. shrub up to 1 m. or more diam., attached to host by a ball-like mass up to c. 2 cm. diam., or (more us.) by a stout branch elongate along host. Branches terete; branchlets subancipital. Lvs coriac., opp., on stout petioles up to c. 10 mm. long. Lamina ovate- to elliptic- to obovate-oblong, thick, entire or obscurely crenulate, 2-8 × 1-3 cm. Panicles 10-30 mm. diam.; peduncles and pedicels slender. Fls ± 2.5 mm. long; outer tepals reduced to a truncate rim; inner tepals greenish yellow, 4, narrow-oblong, free to base; anthers basifixed: style short, stout, twisted at middle; stigma lateral, capitate. Fr. bright yellow, ± ellipsoid, viscid, ± 5-8 mm. long.

DIST.: N., S., St. Common throughout on a rather wide range of hosts, including spp. of Carmichaelia, Coprosma, Hoheria, Leptospermum, Leucopogon, Lophomyrtus, Podocarpus; sts acting as host to Tupeia. Also now occ. on Cytisus, Crataegus, Pinus, Pyrus, Platanus, Rosa.

FL. 10-12. FT. 12-3.

The specimens of A. and R. Cunningham are in very poor condition. Cheeseman (Man. N.Z. Fl. 1925, 393) says of Ileostylus Kirkii Tiegh. loc. cit. 43, 1895, 25 "said to differ from the type in the shape and structure of the leaves". I have not seen the original description, but in any one plant of L. micranthus there is us. a considerable range of lf-form. No specimens attributed to I. Kirkii have been found in the Kirk Herb. at W. Seedling development and haustorial system of L. micranthus have been described by Menzies (Phytomorphology 4, 1954, 397-409).