AusTraits

Bursaria spinosa

Explore the data for this taxon in the portal

Family Pittosporaceae

Taxonomy: Bursaria spinosa Cav.

Synonyms: 3 (APC 2026-07-30)
  • Baeckea spinosa Sieber ex Spreng. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Cyrilla spinosa (Andrews) Spreng. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Itea spinosa Andrews (taxonomic synonym)

Distribution (APC): SA, Qld, NSW, Vic, Tas

Profiles: APC, Flora of Australia, ALA, iNaturalist, NSW Flora, SA eFlora, Vic Flora, ATRP

Traits

Top source datasets: ABRS_2022 (3), ABRS_2023 (23), ANBG_2019 (1), Blackman_2010 (4), Bloomfield_2018 (24), Cheal_2017 (1), Clarke_2015 (3), Collette_2021 (1), Cooper_2013 (14), Draper_2023 (3), Fonseca_2000 (13), Gross_2005 (4), Hughes_1992 (5), Jagdish_2020 (7), Jordan_2001 (6), Jordan_2007 (8), Kooyman_2011 (14), Kubiak_2009 (7), Lawson_2015 (2), Laxton_2005 (2), Leishman_1993 (1), Leishman_1995 (7), Leishman_2007 (7), McGlone_2015 (6), Munroe_2019 (1), NHNSW_2014_2 (5), NHNSW_2022 (3), NHNSW_2023 (16), NSWFRD_2014 (8), Nicholson_2017 (3), Nolan_2022 (15), Prior_2016 (3), RBGV_2022 (3), RBGV_2023 (21), RadfordSmith_2024 (40), Rosell_2014 (8), SAH_2014 (4), SAH_2022 (3), SAH_2023 (23), Sjostrom_2006 (4), SmithMartin_2020 (16), Tng_2013 (6), Wenk_2022 (2), Wenk_2023 (1), Westoby_2014 (1), White_2020 (20), Wright_2000 (8). See below for a full list of sources.
Summary: AusTraits contains 122 traits from 380 records in 47 datasets.

Traits by category (click to expand). For categorical traits, the values are listed. For numerical traits, the mean and range are shown.

fire response
flower morphology
  • flower_colour (categorical): white_cream (1) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2]
  • sex_type (categorical): hermaphrodite (3); monoecious (1) [sources: Gross_2005; Jordan_2001; Sjostrom_2006]
fruit morphology
  • fruit_length (numerical): 6.4 mm (4-10 mm) [sources: ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • fruit_width (numerical): 7.5 mm (5-10 mm) [sources: ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • fruit_height (numerical): 8 mm (7-9 mm) [sources: ABRS_2023; SAH_2023]
  • fruit_type (categorical): capsule (9) [sources: ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; Gross_2005; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; RadfordSmith_2024; SAH_2023; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_fleshiness (categorical): dry (5) [sources: Cooper_2013; Gross_2005; Jordan_2001; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_dehiscence (categorical): dehiscent (7) [sources: ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; Gross_2005; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_colour (categorical): brown (2) [sources: RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
leaf morphology
  • leaf_area (numerical): 69.94 mm2 (16.3-187.4 mm2) [sources: Fonseca_2000; Jordan_2007; Leishman_1995; RadfordSmith_2024; Tng_2013]
  • leaf_length (numerical): 29.75 mm (4-43 mm) [sources: McGlone_2015; ABRS_2023; Kooyman_2011; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2014]
  • leaf_width (numerical): 6.98 mm (1-18 mm) [sources: Fonseca_2000; McGlone_2015; ABRS_2023; Kooyman_2011; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2014]
  • leaf_dry_mass (numerical): 5.3 mg (1-31.8 mg) [sources: Fonseca_2000; RadfordSmith_2024]
  • petiole_length (numerical): 0.12 cm (0.1-0.15 cm) [sources: ABRS_2023]
  • leaf_mass_per_area (numerical): 99.8 g/m2 (33.22-169.69 g/m2) [sources: Blackman_2010; Bloomfield_2018; Fonseca_2000; Jordan_2007; Leishman_1995; Leishman_2007; RadfordSmith_2024; Tng_2013]
  • leaf_dry_matter_content (numerical): 0.57 g/g (0.45-0.82 g/g) [sources: Bloomfield_2018; RadfordSmith_2024]
  • leaf_shape (categorical): elliptical (1); lanceolate (1); linear (3); narrowly_obovate (1); narrowly_ovate (2); obovate (2); obtriangular (1); ovate (1); widely_obovate (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_margin (categorical): entire (3); toothed (2); toothed_dentate (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2014_2; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_lobation (categorical): unlobed (1) [sources: Kooyman_2011]
  • leaf_compoundness (categorical): simple (6) [sources: ABRS_2023; Kooyman_2011; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_phyllotaxis (categorical): alternate (3) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]
  • leaf_arrangement (categorical): clustered (4); scattered (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • plant_photosynthetic_organ (categorical): leaf (4) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
life history
  • photosynthetic_pathway (categorical): c3 (2) [sources: Munroe_2019; White_2020]
  • plant_growth_form (categorical): shrub (13); tree (7) [sources: ABRS_2022; Cooper_2013; Fonseca_2000; Hughes_1992; Kooyman_2011; Leishman_1995; Leishman_2007; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2022; NSWFRD_2014; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; SmithMartin_2020; Wenk_2022; White_2020]
  • life_history (categorical): perennial (6) [sources: ABRS_2022; Jordan_2001; NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; Wenk_2023]
  • woodiness_detailed (categorical): woody (5) [sources: ABRS_2022; NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; Wenk_2022]
  • leaf_phenology (categorical): evergreen (3) [sources: Jordan_2007; Kooyman_2011; RadfordSmith_2024]
  • nitrogen_fixing (categorical): non_nitrogen_fixer (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • parasitic (categorical): not_parasitic (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • pollination_syndrome (categorical): insect (2) [sources: Draper_2023; White_2020]
  • dispersal_syndrome (categorical): anemochory (4); hydrochory (1) [sources: Draper_2023; Hughes_1992; Leishman_1995; RadfordSmith_2024; White_2020]
  • dispersers (categorical): birds (1); water (1); wind (2) [sources: Cooper_2013; Draper_2023; Leishman_1995; White_2020]
  • flowering_time (categorical): nnnnnnnnnnyy (1); yynnnnnnnnny (2); yyyynnnnnnnn (1); yyyynnnnnnyy (1) [sources: Cooper_2013; Hughes_1992; NHNSW_2014_2; NSWFRD_2014; White_2020]
  • serotiny (categorical): not_serotinous (1) [sources: Hughes_1992]
  • seedbank_longevity_class (categorical): transient (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • seed_dormancy_class (categorical): non_dormant (1) [sources: Collette_2021]
  • vegetative_reproduction_ability (categorical): not_vegetative (2) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2; White_2020]
  • storage_organ (categorical): lignotuber (1) [sources: NSWFRD_2014]
  • bud_bank_location (categorical): basal_buds (1); basal_stem_buds (2) [sources: Clarke_2015; NSWFRD_2014; Prior_2016]
nutrient and stable isotope
  • leaf_N_per_dry_mass (numerical): 17.73 mg/g (15.54-19.93 mg/g) [sources: Bloomfield_2018; Leishman_2007]
  • leaf_P_per_dry_mass (numerical): 0.68 mg/g (0.68-0.68 mg/g) [sources: Bloomfield_2018]
  • leaf_delta13C (numerical): -30.1 {delta}[ppth] (-31.16--29.03 {delta}[ppth]) [sources: Tng_2013; Westoby_2014]
physiology
seed morphology
  • seed_dry_mass (numerical): 1.3 mg (1.07-1.5 mg) [sources: ANBG_2019; Jagdish_2020; Leishman_1993; Leishman_1995]
  • seed_length (numerical): 3.65 mm (3-5 mm) [sources: Jordan_2001; ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; Kooyman_2011; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • seed_width (numerical): 2.37 mm (0.47-4 mm) [sources: Jordan_2001; RadfordSmith_2024; Kooyman_2011; SAH_2023]
  • seed_shape (categorical): discoid (1); orbicular (1); reniform (2); winged (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
stem morphology
  • wood_density (numerical): 0.7 mg/mm3 (0.6-0.8 mg/mm3) [sources: Blackman_2010; Lawson_2015; RadfordSmith_2024; Rosell_2014; Tng_2013]
whole plant morphology
  • plant_height (numerical): 7.5 m (1-12 m) [sources: ABRS_2023; Cooper_2013; Hughes_1992; Kooyman_2011; Leishman_1995; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • plant_physical_defence_structures (categorical): sharp_pointed_defence (1) [sources: White_2020]

Sources

dataset_idn_traitsn_recordsreference
RadfordSmith_20241540J. Radford-Smith, H. R. Lai, E. C. Weeren, and J. M. Dwyer. “A Functional Basis for the Assembly of Australian Subtropical Rainforest Tree Communities”. Ecology Letters 27.11 (2024). ISSN: 1461-0248. doi: 10.1111/ele.70014.
Bloomfield_20182324K. J. Bloomfield, L. A. Cernusak, D. Eamus, D. S. Ellsworth, I. C. Prentice, I. J. Wright, M. M. Boer, M. G. Bradford, P. Cale, J. Cleverly, J. J. G. Egerton, B. J. Evans, L. S. Hayes, M. F. Hutchinson, M. J. Liddell, C. Macfarlane, W. S. Meyer, S. M. Prober, H. F. Togashi, T. Wardlaw, L. Zhu, and O. K. Atkin. “A continental-scale assessment of variability in leaf traits: Within species, across sites and between seasons”. Functional Ecology 32.6 (2018), pp. 1492-1506. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.13097.
ABRS_20231723Australian Biological Resources Study. Flora of Australia, Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2023. url: http://www.ausflora.org.au.
SAH_20231623S. H. of South Australia. eFlora of SA, Electronic Flora of South Australia. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/.
RBGV_20231621VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
White_20202020M. White, S. Sinclair, and D. Frood. Victorian Vital Attributes Database. database. Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria, 2020.
NHNSW_20231216N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
SmithMartin_2020616C. M. Smith-Martin, R. P. Skelton, K. M. Johnson, C. Lucani, and T. J. Brodribb. “Lack of vulnerability segmentation among woody species in a diverse dry sclerophyll woodland community”. Functional Ecology 34 (2020), pp. 777-787. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.13519.
Nolan_2022315Nolan and R. Helene. “Drought-related leaf functional traits control spatial and temporal dynamics of live fuel moisture content”. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology unknown.unknown (2022), p. unknown. doi: unknown.
Cooper_20131114W. Cooper and W. T. Cooper. Australian rainforest fruits. CSIRO Publishing, 2013, p. 272.
Kooyman_20111014R. Kooyman, M. Rossetto, W. Cornwell, and M. Westoby. “Phylogenetic tests of community assembly across regional to continental scales in tropical and subtropical rain forests”. Global Ecology and Biogeography 20 (2011), pp. 707-716. doi: 10.1111/j.1466-8238.2010.00641.x.
Fonseca_2000513C. R. Fonseca, J. M. Overton, B. Collins, and M. Westoby. “Shifts in trait-combinations along rainfall and phosphorus gradients”. Journal of Ecology 88 (2000), pp. 964-977. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2745.2000.00506.x.
Jordan_200788G. J. Jordan. “Unpublished data: Leaf traits for Tasmanian species, University of Tasmania”. 2007.
NSWFRD_201488B. Kenny, C. Orscheg, E. Tasker, M. A. Gill, and R. Bradstock. NSW Flora Fire Response Database, v2.1. database. NSW Department of Planning Industry and Environment, 2014.
Rosell_201488J. A. Rosell, S. Gleason, R. Mendez-Alonzo, Y. Chang, and M. Westoby. “Bark functional ecology: Evidence for tradeoffs, functional coordination, and environment producing bark diversity”. New Phytologist 201.2 (2014), pp. 486-497. doi: 10.1111/nph.12541.
Wright_200088I. J. Wright, H. T. Clifford, R. Kidson, M. L. Reed, B. L. Rice, and M. Westoby. “A survey of seed and seedling characters in 1744 Australian dicotyledon species: Cross-species trait correlations and correlated trait-shifts within evolutionary lineages”. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 69 (2000), pp. 521-547. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2000.tb01222.x.
Jagdish_202027A. Jagdish. “Unpublished data: Germination photoperiod sensitivity of Australian Plants, University of New South Wales”. 2020.
Kubiak_200947P. J. Kubiak. “Fire responses of bushland plants after the January 1994 wildfires in northern Sydney”. Cunninghamia 11.1 (2009), pp. 131-165.
Leishman_199577M. R. Leishman, M. Westoby, and E. Jurado. “Correlates of seed size variation: A comparison among five temperate floras”. Journal of Ecology 83 (1995), pp. 517-529. doi: 10.2307/2261604.
Leishman_200777M. R. Leishman, T. Haslehurst, A. Ares, and Z. Baruch. “Leaf trait relationships of native and invasive plants: community- and global-scale comparisons”. New Phytologist 176.3 (2007), pp. 635-643. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2007.02189.x.
Jordan_200166G. J. Jordan. “An investigation of long-distance dispersal based on species native to both Tasmania and New Zealand”. Australian Journal of Botany 49.3 (2001), pp. 333-340. doi: 10.1071/bt00024.
McGlone_201566M. S. McGlone, S. J. Richardson, G. J. Jordan, and G. L. Perry. “Is there a `suboptimal' woody species height? A response to Scheffer et al.”. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 30.1 (2015), pp. 4-5. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2014.09.007.
Tng_201366D. Y. P. Tng, G. J. Jordan, and D. M. J. S. Bowman. “Plant traits demonstrate that temperate and tropical giant Eucalypt forests are ecologically convergent with rainforest not savanna”. PLoS ONE 8 (2013), p. e84378. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084378.
Hughes_199255L. Hughes and B. Rice. “Unpublished data: Traits data for 643 species, Macquarie University”. 1992.
NHNSW_2014_255Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. PLantNET: NSW flora online. 2014. url: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Blackman_201044C. J. Blackman, T. J. Brodribb, and G. J. Jordan. “Leaf hydraulic vulnerability is related to conduit dimensions and drought resistance across a diverse range of woody angiosperms”. New Phytologist 188.4 (2010), pp. 1113-1123. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03439.x.
Gross_200544C. L. Gross. “A comparison of the sexual systems in the trees from the Australian tropics with other tropical biomes-more monoecy but why?”. American Journal of Botany 92.6 (2005), pp. 907-919. doi: 10.3732/ajb.92.6.907.
SAH_201424J. P. Jessop and H. R. Toelken. Flora of South Australia, 4th edition, 4 vols. Electronic version curated by J. Kellermann, State Herbarium of South Australia.. Government Printer, Adelaide, 1986.
Sjostrom_200644A. Sjöström and C. L. Gross. “Life-history characters and phylogeny are correlated with extinction risk in the Australian angiosperms”. Journal of Biogeography 33.2 (2006), pp. 271-290. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2699.2005.01393.x.
ABRS_202233Australian Biological Resources Study. Flora of Australia, Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2022. url: http://www.ausflora.org.au.
Clarke_201533P. J. Clarke, M. J. Lawes, B. P. Murphy, J. Russell-Smith, C. E. Nano, R. Bradstock, N. J. Enright, J. B. Fontaine, C. R. Gosper, I. Radford, J. J. Midgley, and R. M. Gunton. “A synthesis of postfire recovery traits of woody plants in Australian ecosystems”. Science of The Total Environment 534 (2015), pp. 31-42. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.04.002.
Draper_202333J. T. Draper, S. Delean, J. G. Conran, P. Weinstein, and B. S. Simpson. “Life-history characteristics and climate correlates of dioecious plant species in central southern Australia”. Australian Journal of Botany unknown.unknown (2023), p. unknown. doi: 10.1071/BT22110.
NHNSW_202233N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Nicholson_201723A. Nicholson, L. D. Prior, G. L. W. Perry, and D. M. J. S. Bowman. “High post-fire mortality of resprouting woody plants in Tasmanian Mediterranean-type vegetation”. International Journal of Wildland Fire 26 (2017), pp. 532-537. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/WF16211.
Prior_201633L. D. Prior, G. J. Williamson, and D. M. J. S. Bowman. “Impact of high-severity fire in a Tasmainian dry eucalypt forest”. Australian Journal of Botany 64 (2016), pp. 193-205. doi: 10.1071/BT15259.
RBGV_202233VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
SAH_202233S. H. of South Australia. eFlora of SA, Electronic Flora of South Australia. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/.
Lawson_201512J. R. Lawson, K. A. Fryirs, and M. R. Leishman. “Data from: Hydrological conditions explain wood density in riparian plants of south-eastern Australia”. Dryad Digital Repository (2015). doi: 10.5061/dryad.72h45.
Laxton_200522E. Laxton. “Relationship between leaf traits, insect communities and resource availability”. PhD. Macquarie University, 2005. url: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.14/483.
Wenk_202222E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant growth forms dataset”. 2022.
ANBG_201911Australian National Botanic Gardens. The National Seed Bank. 2018. url: http://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/living/seedbank/.
Cheal_201711D. Cheal. Growth stages and tolerable fire intervals for Victoria's native vegetation data sets. Fire and adaptive management, report no. 84. Victorian Government Department of Sustainability and Environment Melbourne, 2010.
Collette_202111J. C. Collette and M. K. J. Ooi. “Distribution of seed dormancy classes across a fire-prone continent: effects of rainfall seasonality and temperature”. Annals of Botany 127.5 (2021), pp. 613-620. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcaa203.
Leishman_199311M. Leishman. “Unpublished data: Seed mass data for Sydney species, Macquarie University”. 1990.
Munroe_201911S. E. M. Munroe, F. A. McInerney, J. Andrae, N. Welti, G. R. Guerin, E. Leitch, T. Hall, S. Szarvas, R. Atkins, S. Caddy-Retalic, and B. Sparrow. “The Photosynthetic Pathways of Plant Species Surveyed in Australia's National Terrestrial Monitoring Network”. Scientific Data 8 (2021), p. 97. doi: 10.1038/s41597-021-00877-z.
Wenk_202311E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant life history dataset, University of New South Wales, Sydney”. 2023.
Westoby_201411S. M. Gleason, D. W. Butler, K. Zieminska, P. Waryszak, and M. Westoby. “Stem xylem conductivity is key to plant water balance across Australian angiosperm species”. Functional Ecology 26 (2012), pp. 343-352. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2435.2012.01962.x.