Metrosideros vitiensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is a shrub or tree native to Vanuatu, Fiji, and the Samoan Islands.[1]
| Metrosideros vitiensis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | Metrosideros |
| Species: | M. vitiensis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Metrosideros vitiensis (A.Gray) Villon (2015)
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| Synonyms[1] | |
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Taxonomy
editMetrosideros vitiensis was formerly included within M. collina. A phylogenetic study, published in 2015 by Pillon et al., found that M. collina comprised two genetically distinct groups. The populations in Vanuatu, Fiji, and the Samoan Islands were recognized as a distinct species, M. vitiensis, while the populations in the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, and Pitcairn Islands remained in M. collina.[2]
Habitat
editOn the larger Fijian islands, Metrosideros vitiensis is a characteristic tree in montane rain forests on windy slopes from 400 to 600 meters elevation. It is a common canopy tree in the low, stunted forest, with the associated trees Agathis vitiensis, Podocarpus spp., Calophyllum vitiense, Endospermum macrophyllum, Myristica castaneifolia, and Didymocheton spp.[3]
In the Samoan Islands, M. vitiensis is a common tree on upland lava flows.[4]
References
edit- ^ a b Metrosideros vitiensis (A.Gray) Pillon. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ Pillon, Y., Lucas, E., Johansen, J. B., Sakishima, T., Hall, B., Geib, S. M., & Stacy, E. A. (2015). An Expanded Metrosideros (Myrtaceae) to Include Carpolepis and Tepualia Based on Nuclear Genes. Systematic Botany, 40(3), 782–790. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24546499
- ^ "Fiji tropical moist forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.
- ^ "Samoa tropical moist forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
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