AusTraits

Scaevola spinescens

Explore the data for this taxon in the portal

Family Goodeniaceae

Taxonomy: Scaevola spinescens R.Br.

Synonyms: 11 (APC 2026-07-30)
  • Crossotoma lycioides (DC.) de Vriese (taxonomic synonym)
  • Crossotoma lycoides (DC.) de Vriese (orthographic variant)
  • Crossotoma oleoides (DC.) de Vriese (taxonomic synonym)
  • Crossotoma spinescens (R.Br.) de Vriese (nomenclatural synonym)
  • Lobelia spinescens (R.Br.) Kuntze (nomenclatural synonym)
  • Pogonetes spinescens A.D.Chapm. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Scaevola lycioides DC. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Scaevola lycoides DC. (orthographic variant)
  • Scaevola oleoides DC. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Scaevola spinescens R.Br. var. spinescens (nomenclatural synonym)
  • Scaevola spinescens var. rufa E.Pritz. (taxonomic synonym)

Distribution (APC): WA, NT, SA, Qld, NSW, Vic

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

Traits

Top source datasets: ABRS_1981 (2), ABRS_2022 (3), ABRS_2023 (15), Chen_2017 (1), Clarke_2015 (3), Crowley_2007 (2), Curtis_2012 (14), Dong_2017 (8), Fonseca_2000 (5), Gosper_2018 (6), Kew_2019_1 (1), Leishman_1992 (5), McGlone_2015 (6), Moles_2003 (4), Munroe_2019 (1), NHNSW_2014_2 (3), NHNSW_2022 (3), NHNSW_2023 (15), NSWFRD_2014 (5), NTH_2022 (3), NTH_2023 (17), Nano_2011 (4), RBGV_2022 (3), RBGV_2023 (15), RussellSmith_2012 (4), SAH_2022 (3), SAH_2023 (15), Sjostrom_2006 (3), Sweedman_2006 (4), WAH_1998 (1), WAH_2022_2 (3), WAH_2023_2 (2), Wenk_2022 (2), Wenk_2023 (1), White_2020 (19). See below for a full list of sources.
Summary: AusTraits contains 69 traits from 201 records in 35 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
  • resprouting_capacity (categorical): fire_killed (1); partial_resprouting (1); resprouts (6) [sources: Clarke_2015; Crowley_2007; Gosper_2018; NSWFRD_2014; Nano_2011; RussellSmith_2012; White_2020]
  • post_fire_recruitment (categorical): post_fire_recruitment (2); post_fire_recruitment_absent (2) [sources: Clarke_2015; NSWFRD_2014; Nano_2011]
flower morphology
  • flower_colour (categorical): blue_purple (1); red_brown (1); white_cream (1) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2]
  • sex_type (categorical): hermaphrodite (1) [sources: Sjostrom_2006]
fruit morphology
  • fruit_length (numerical): 6.5 mm (5-9 mm) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • fruit_width (numerical): 3 mm (2-4 mm) [sources: NTH_2023]
  • fruit_fleshiness (categorical): fleshy (1) [sources: Sjostrom_2006]
  • fruit_dehiscence (categorical): indehiscent (6) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023; Sjostrom_2006]
  • fruit_colour (categorical): black (4); purple (5) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
leaf morphology
  • leaf_area (numerical): 26.26 mm2 (15.5-34.27 mm2) [sources: Curtis_2012; Fonseca_2000; Leishman_1992]
  • leaf_length (numerical): 23.17 mm (6-38 mm) [sources: Curtis_2012; McGlone_2015; ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_width (numerical): 3.68 mm (1-9 mm) [sources: Curtis_2012; Fonseca_2000; McGlone_2015; ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_dry_mass (numerical): 3.5 mg (3-4 mg) [sources: Curtis_2012; Fonseca_2000]
  • leaf_mass_per_area (numerical): 178.2 g/m2 (126.92-207.67 g/m2) [sources: Curtis_2012; Dong_2017; Fonseca_2000]
  • leaf_dry_matter_content (numerical): 0.43 g/g (0.43-0.43 g/g) [sources: Curtis_2012]
  • leaf_shape (categorical): lanceolate (1); linear (4); oblanceolate (1); obovate (5); spathulate (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_margin (categorical): entire (5) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_compoundness (categorical): simple (5) [sources: ABRS_2023; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_lamina_posture (categorical): flat (1) [sources: NTH_2023]
  • leaf_phyllotaxis (categorical): alternate (3) [sources: NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_arrangement (categorical): clustered (4); fasciculate (1) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • plant_photosynthetic_organ (categorical): leaf (5) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
life history
  • photosynthetic_pathway (categorical): c3 (2) [sources: Munroe_2019; White_2020]
  • plant_growth_form (categorical): herb (1); shrub (14) [sources: ABRS_2022; Curtis_2012; Fonseca_2000; Gosper_2018; Leishman_1992; McGlone_2015; Moles_2003; NHNSW_2022; NSWFRD_2014; NTH_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2022; White_2020]
  • life_form (categorical): phanerophyte (1) [sources: Gosper_2018]
  • life_history (categorical): perennial (11) [sources: ABRS_2022; Curtis_2012; Gosper_2018; Leishman_1992; Moles_2003; NHNSW_2022; NTH_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2023]
  • woodiness_detailed (categorical): woody (7) [sources: ABRS_2022; NHNSW_2022; NTH_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2022]
  • stem_growth_habit (categorical): prostrate (1) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2]
  • leaf_phenology (categorical): evergreen (1) [sources: ABRS_1981]
  • nitrogen_fixing (categorical): non_nitrogen_fixer (2) [sources: Dong_2017; White_2020]
  • parasitic (categorical): not_parasitic (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • pollination_syndrome (categorical): insect (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • dispersal_syndrome (categorical): endozoochory (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • dispersers (categorical): birds (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • flowering_time (categorical): nnnnnnnnnnnn (1); yyyyyyyyyyyy (5) [sources: ABRS_1981; Chen_2017; NHNSW_2014_2; NSWFRD_2014; WAH_1998; White_2020]
  • seedbank_location (categorical): canopy_seedbank_absent (1); soil_seedbank (1) [sources: Gosper_2018]
  • serotiny (categorical): not_serotinous (1) [sources: Gosper_2018]
  • seedbank_longevity_class (categorical): persistent (2) [sources: RussellSmith_2012; White_2020]
  • seed_viability (numerical): 0.58 {count}/{count} (0.58-0.58 {count}/{count}) [sources: Moles_2003]
  • vegetative_reproduction_ability (categorical): not_vegetative (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • storage_organ (categorical): no_storage_organ (1) [sources: Leishman_1992]
  • bud_bank_location (categorical): basal_buds (1); basal_stem_buds (3) [sources: Clarke_2015; Crowley_2007; NSWFRD_2014; Nano_2011]
nutrient and stable isotope
  • leaf_N_per_dry_mass (numerical): 11.97 mg/g (11.97-11.97 mg/g) [sources: Dong_2017]
  • leaf_delta13C (numerical): -27.02 {delta}[ppth] (-27.02--27.02 {delta}[ppth]) [sources: Dong_2017]
seed morphology
  • seed_dry_mass (numerical): 6.12 mg (6.12-6.12 mg) [sources: Kew_2019_1]
  • seed_shape (categorical): ovoid (2) [sources: ABRS_2023; NHNSW_2023]
whole plant morphology
  • plant_height (numerical): 1.76 m (0.2-2 m) [sources: ABRS_2023; Leishman_1992; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; NTH_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023; WAH_2023_2]
  • plant_physical_defence_structures (categorical): sharp_pointed_defence (1) [sources: White_2020]

Sources

dataset_idn_traitsn_recordsreference
White_20201919M. White, S. Sinclair, and D. Frood. Victorian Vital Attributes Database. database. Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria, 2020.
NTH_20231317D. of Land Resource Management and N. T. of Australia. Northern Territory Flora Online. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://eflora.nt.gov.au/.
ABRS_20231215Australian Biological Resources Study. Flora of Australia, Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2023. url: http://www.ausflora.org.au.
NHNSW_20231215N. 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/.
RBGV_20231215VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
SAH_20231215S. 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/.
Curtis_20121414E. M. Curtis, A. Leigh, and S. Rayburg. “Relationships among leaf traits of Australian arid zone plants: alternative modes of thermal protection”. Australian Journal of Botany 60.6 (2012), pp. 471-483. doi: 10.1071/bt11284.
Dong_201788N. Dong, I. C. Prentice, B. J. Evans, S. Caddy-Retalic, A. J. Lowe, and I. J. Wright. “Leaf nitrogen from first principles: field evidence for adaptive variation with climate”. Biogeosciences 14.2 (2017), pp. 481-495. doi: 10.5194/bg-14-481-2017.
Gosper_201866C. R. Gosper, C. J. Yates, G. D. Cook, J. M. Harvey, A. C. Liedloff, W. L. McCaw, K. R. Thiele, and S. M. Prober. “A conceptual model of vegetation dynamics for the unique obligate-seeder eucalypt woodlands of south-western Australia”. Austral Ecology 43.6 (2018), pp. 681-695. doi: 10.1111/aec.12613.
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.
Fonseca_200055C. 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.
Leishman_199255M. R. Leishman and M. Westoby. “Classifying plants into groups on the basis of associations of individual traits-Evidence from Australian semi-arid woodlands”. Journal of Ecology 80 (1992), pp. 417-424. doi: 10.2307/2260687.
NSWFRD_201455B. 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.
Moles_200344A. T. Moles, D. I. Warton, and M. Westoby. “Seed size and survival in the soil in arid Australia”. Austral Ecology 28.5 (2003), pp. 575-585. doi: 10.1046/j.1442-9993.2003.01314.x.
Nano_201134C. E. M. Nano and P. J. Clarke. “How do drought and fire influence the patterns of resprouting in Australian deserts?”. Plant Ecology 212 (2011), pp. 2095-2110. doi: 10.1007/s11258-011-9988-x.
RussellSmith_201244J. Russell-Smith, M. R. Gardener, C. Brock, K. Brennan, C. P. Yates, and B. Grace. “Fire persistence traits can be used to predict vegetation response to changing fire regimes at expansive landscape scales - an Australian example”. Journal of Biogeography 39 (2012), pp. 1657-1668. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2699.2012.02714.x.
Sweedman_200624L. Sweedman and D. Merritt. Australian Seeds: A Guide to Their Collection, Identification, and Biology. CSIRO Publishing, 2006. ISBN: 9780643094079.
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.
NHNSW_2014_233Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. PLantNET: NSW flora online. 2014. url: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
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/.
NTH_202233D. of Land Resource Management and N. T. of Australia. Northern Territory Flora Online. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://eflora.nt.gov.au/.
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/.
Sjostrom_200633A. 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.
WAH_2022_233Western Australian Herbarium. Florabase—the Western Australian Flora.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2022. url: https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au/.
ABRS_198122B. A. Barlow, H. T. Clifford, A. S. George, and A. K. A. McCusker. Flora of Australia. 1981. url: http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/abrs/online-resources/flora/main/.
Crowley_200722G. Crowley, M. Gardener, and M. Marrinan. Tropical savannas fire response database. 2007. url: [www.landmanager.org.au](www.landmanager.org.au).
WAH_2023_212Western Australian Herbarium. Florabase—the Western Australian Flora.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2023. url: https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au/.
Wenk_202222E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant growth forms dataset”. 2022.
Chen_201711Chen, S.-C., Cornwell, W., Z. H.-X., Moles, and A. T. “Plants show more flesh in the tropics: Variation in fruit type along latitudinal and climatic gradients.”. Ecography 40 (2017), pp. 531-538. doi: abs/10.1111/ecog.02010.
Kew_2019_111Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
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.
WAH_199811Western Australian Herbarium. FloraBase: The Western Australian flora. 1998. url: http://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au.
Wenk_202311E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant life history dataset, University of New South Wales, Sydney”. 2023.