About Hedraianthera porphyropetala F.Muell.
Hedraianthera is a genus in the family Celastraceae, with only one currently recognized species: the shrub or small tree endemic to Australia, Hedraianthera porphyropetala. This species grows naturally in eastern Australia, occurring in littoral or subtropical rainforest from north of Ballina, New South Wales, north to Cooktown in tropical northeastern Queensland. It grows in gullies or on rocky slopes in shallow soils, which are sometimes enriched by basalt. The generic name Hedraianthera comes from Greek, referring to the plant's stalkless flower anthers. The specific epithet porphyropetala also comes from Greek, and refers to the species' attractive deep purple flowers, though the species definition also includes plants with differently colored flowers such as green. H. porphyropetala is an unusually southern example of ramiflory.
Previously, several publications contained informal scientific descriptions for an additional provisional species, recorded under the informal name Hedraianthera sp. Mossman (V.K.Moriarty 2557) Qld Herbarium. In a 2012 genetic study of the family Celastraceae, this provisionally named species was moved to the genus Brassiantha and formally described under the new name Brassiantha hedraiantheroides, named for its similarity to Hedraianthera. Though the two species remain relatively closely related, the study determined they belong to separate genera. After this reassignment, H. porphyropetala once again became the only known species in the genus Hedraianthera. The genus Brassiantha now contains two known species: B. hedraiantheroides, and the New Guinean B. pentamera. B. hedraiantheroides is endemic to a restricted area of the wet tropics region of northeastern Queensland, Australia. It grows as an understory shrub or small tree in rainforests and sclerophyll forests, at altitudes ranging from near sea level up to 600 m (2,000 ft).
