Plants of
South Australia
Wurmbea nilpinna
Colchicaceae
Davenport Range Star-lily
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
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Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
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Hawker
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Prior names

Wurmbea sp. Nilpinna (F.J.Badman 7107)

Etymology

Wurmbea name after Friedrick Wilhelm von Wurmb, merchant and botanist in 18th century Batavia (Jakarta). Nilpinna named after the station property containing the Davenport Range, where the type specimen was collected from and is of Aboriginal origin.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and found only in the Davenport Ranges, growing on rock slopes in fertile red clay. Native. Very rare in South Australia.
Herbarium region: Lake Eyre
NRM region: South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Herb to 20 cm tall, with fleshy purplish stems to 3 mm diameter. Leaves 3, the lowest linear-lanceolate, falcate, to 15 cm long and 5 mm wide, with a leathery texture, middle leaf similar but shorter and with an inflated base, upper leaf just below the inflorescence, ovoid, bract-like, to 3 cm long. Inflorescence spike with 1- 5, white with pink edging star-like flowers, tepals narrow lanceolate, nectary a distinctive pink �pocket� in the middle of each tepal, anthers ovoid, purple-red, ovary ovoid, red. Flowering between June and September, depending on rainfall. Fruits are brown papery box-like capsule to 25 mm long, containing many seeds. Seeds are orange brown globular seed to 2 mm diameter, with a wrinkled surface. Seed embryo type is linear under-developed.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between September and November. Collect mature capsules, those turning pale straw colour and containing hard brown seeds. Place the capsules in a tray and leave to dry for two weeks. Then rub the capsules gently by hand to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to separate the unwanted material. Store the seeds with a desiccant such as dried silica beads or dry rice, in an air tight container in a cool and dry place. From one collection, the seed viability was high, at 90%.

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA1,040 (6.88 g)100+9-Oct-2010DJD1967
Lake Eyre
1-Jan-201290%-18°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
Number of plants: This is the number of plants from which the seeds were collected.
Collection location: The Herbarium of South Australia's region name.
% Viability: Percentage of filled healthy seeds determined by a cut test or x-ray.