Erica verticillata P.J.Bergius (1767:99)
Cape Flats erica, Whorled heath, Whorl heath
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonyms: Ericoides verticillatum (P.J.Bergius) Kuntze in Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 965 (1891); Erica concinna Aiton in Hort. Kew. 2: 23 (1789); Syringodea concinna (Aiton) G.Don in Gen. Hist. 3: 823 (1834); Erica paludosa Salisb. in Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton: 293 (1796); Erica verecunda G.Lodd. in Bot. Cab. 19: t. 1827 (1832), nom. illeg.; Callista verecunda G.Don in Gen. Hist. 3: 815 (1834); Erica cretica Tausch in Flora 17(2): 604 (1834); Gypsocallis manipuliflora D.Don in Edinburgh New Philos. J. 17: 153 (1834); Erica abietina Andrews ex G.Don in Gen. Hist. 3: 823 (1834), not validly publ.; Erica mediterranea Sieber ex Tausch in Flora 17(2): 604 (1834), not validly publ.; Erica multiflora Decne. in Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., sér. 2, 4: 353 (1835); Erica metuliflora Klotzsch in Linnaea 12: 502 (1838); Erica meuronii Benth. in A.P.de Candolle, Prodr. 7: 636 (1839); Ericoides meuronii (Benth.) Kuntze in Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 967 (1891); Erica roxburghii Benth. in A.P.de Candolle, Prodr. 7: 682 (1839); Ericoides roxburghii (Benth.) Kuntze in Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 967 (1891); Erica vaga Benth. in A.P.de Candolle, Prodr. 7: 667 (1839), nom. illeg.
Conservation Status
Extinct in the Wild (Helme & Trinder-Smith, 2006; Oliver et al., 2022)
Last record: 1908 (wild); cultivation (1950 or later)
Rediscovered in 1984
The species was thought to be extinct even in cultivation by 1950, but was rediscovered in 1984 in a Pretorian park. Several cultivars of this species were registered in 2012 (Hitchcock & Rebelo, 2017).
Distribution
Cape Flats, Western Cape Province, South Africa
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Media
Above: photo by Abu Shawka in 2011. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
References
Argus. (2006). Rondevlei boosts new species thought to be extinct. Fynbos sanctuary plants new attitudes in residents, 16 August, p. 8.
Bolus, H., Guthrie, F. and Brown, N. E. (1909). Ericaceae. In: W.T. Thiselton-Dyer (ed). Flora Capensis IV Section I (Vacciniaceae to Gentianeae): 2-418. Lovell Reeve & Co., Ltd., London.
Goldblatt, P. and Manning, J. C. (2000). Cape Plants: A conspectus of the Cape Flora of South Africa. Strelitzia 9. National Botanical Institute, Cape Town.
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Hall, A. V., De Winter, M., De Winter, B. and Van Oosterhout, S. A. M. (1980). Threatened plants of southern Africa. South African National Scienctific Programmes Report 45. CSIR, Pretoria.
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Helme, N. A. and Trinder-Smith, T. H. (2006). The endemic flora of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. South African Journal of Botany 72(2): 205-210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2005.07.004
Hilton-Taylor, C. (1996a). Red Data List of Southern African Plants. Strelitzia, 4. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
Hilton-Taylor, C. (1996b). Threatened Ericaceae in southern Africa. Yearbook of the Heather Society, 7–16.
Hitchcock, A. (2003). Erica verticillata is brought back from the brink of extinction, pp. 45-50. Yearbook of the Heather Society.
Hitchcock, Anthony. (2007). The return of Erica verticillata. Veld & Flora 93(1): 14-17.
Hitchcock, A., Cowell, C. and Rebelo, A. (2012). The lost fynbos of Tokai Park. Veld & Flora 98(1): 30-33.
Hitchcock, A., Cowell, C. and Stauch, M. (2008). Weaving the Golden Circle: Kenilworth Racecourse Conservation Area. Veld & Flora 94(1):31-35.
Hitchcock, Anthony and Rebelo, Anthony G. (2017). The Restoration of Erica verticillata - a Case Study in Species and Habitat Restoration and Implications for the Cape Flora. Sibbaldia 15: 39-63.
Humphreys, Aelys M., Govaerts, Rafaël, Ficinski, Sarah Z., Lughadha, Eimear Nic and Vorontsova, Maria S. (2019). Global dataset shows geography and life form predict modern plant extinction and rediscovery. Nature Ecology & Evolution 3: 1043-1047. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-019-0906-2 [Supplementary Dataset 1]
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Oliver, E. G. H. and Oliver, I. M. (2005). The genus Erica (Ericaceae) in southern Africa: taxonomic notes 2. Bothalia 35(2): 121-148.
Oliver, E. G. H., Turner, R. C. and Pillay, D. (2012). Erica verticillata P.J.Bergius. National Assessment: Red List of South African Plants version 2017.1. Accessed on 2017/06/04.
Oliver, E. G. H., Turner, R. C. and Pillay, D. (2022). Erica verticillata P.J.Bergius. National Assessment: Red List of South African Plants version. Accessed on 2024/04/28
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Schumann, D., Kirsten, G. and Oliver, E. G. H. (1992). Ericas of South Africa. Cape Town: Fernwood Press.
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http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/fynbos-species-back-from-brink-of-extinction-1.1812267#.VNCdsp2UdCi
https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/blue_mountains_botanic_garden/the_garden/blooming_calendar/Erica_verticillata
https://kew.dev.thebureaulondon.com/plant/whorl-heath/
http://pza.sanbi.org/history-loss-and-rediscovery-erica-verticillata
http://www.pas.va/content/accademia/en/publications/scriptavaria/noahs_arks/hitchcock.pdf
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https://www.pas.va/en/publications/scripta-varia/sv146pas/hitchcock.html