Homoranthus papillatus, commonly known as mouse bush,[2] is a flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area in southern Queensland. It is a compact shrub with curved, linear leaves and pale yellow flowers arranged in upper leaf axils.
Homoranthus papiillatus is small, prostrate, spreading shrub to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) high. The leaves are arranged opposite on a short petiole, linear, curved, about 10 mm (0.39 in) long with dense warty protuberances on the surface. The flowers are borne singly in upper leaf axils, light lemon-yellow, calyx tube 4 mm (0.16 in) long, 1 mm (0.039 in) in diameter, smooth, ribbed, five orbicular petals about 1 mm (0.039 in) in diameter, and a protruding style 6–9 mm (0.24–0.35 in) long, pedicel 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) long. The bracts are 5 mm (0.20 in) long, dry and fall off when the flower opens. Flowering occurs from September to November and the dry fruit forms September to December.[2][3][4]
Homoranthus papillatus was first formally described in 1981 by Norman Byrnes from a specimen collected in Girraween National Park in 1976 and the description was published in Austrobaileya.[4][5] The specific epithet (papillatus) is a Latin word meaning "budlike".[6] The common name "mouse bush" is due to the strong odour the plant emits, that of the smell of mice.[7]
Mouse bush is endemic to Mount Norman in Girraween National Park, Queensland where it grows in heath on skeletal sandy soils among crevices of granite outcrops.[3]
This homoranthus is a rare species with a highly restricted distribution and low population numbers. It has been given ROTAP conservation code 2VC-t. IUCN (2010) considered "vulnerable".[3]
Homoranthus papillatus, commonly known as mouse bush, is a flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area in southern Queensland. It is a compact shrub with curved, linear leaves and pale yellow flowers arranged in upper leaf axils.
