Kingdom: Plantae
(Unranked): Angiosperms
(Unranked): Eudicots
(Unranked): Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Leptecophylla
Species: Leptecophylla robusta
Synonyms: Cyathodes robusta, Cyathodes acerosa var. latifolia, Styphelia robusta.
Common Name: Pouteretere
Leptecophylla robusta is a dioecious shrub or small tree up to 8 m tall with a deeply furrowed trunk. It is endemic to the Chatham Islands (Chatham, Pitt and South-East Islands) It habitat is rocky places and shrubland. It is mostly threatened by land clearance and its local use for firewood.
The leaves are erect or spreading, green, thick and stiff (10-16 mm long 2-4 mm wide) narrowed to a callus tip. The leaves lower surface has 5-11 conspicuous veins.
Leptecophylla robusta flower throughout the year, these are white sickly-sweet fragrant. It develops a red, pink or white, fleshy, spherical, 5-8 × 6-10 mm drupe (a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell).
For more detailed information visit: http://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora_details.asp? ID=560
A small tree photographed at Otari Native Botanic Garden and Wilton's Bush Reserve. Wellington.
Thanks to Wikipedia for text and information http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
