Heliotropium pannifolium

Heliotropium pannifolium is an extinct species of the family Boraginaceae ( Boraginaceae ). She was endemic to St. Helena.

Description

Heliotropium pannifolium was a shrub reaching a height of one meter. The entire plant was covered with hair. The numerous terete branches were leafy. The bark was dark brown. The alternate arranged leaves had a length of ten to twelve centimeters and a width of four centimeters. They were entire, wavy, oblong, obtuse, almost heart-shaped at the base, hairy all over soft, somewhat thickened and slightly fleshy. The leaf nerves were on the underside of leaves protruding, on the upper leaf surface reticulate and depressed. The petioles were two inches long. Stipules were not available.

The stalked, terminal, trugdoldige inflorescence was as long as the leaves. The sessile flowers were small. The hairy calyx was tubular at the base and had above five sepals. The corolla was tray- shaped. The corolla tube was hairy on the outside. There were five stamens. The pens were divided into two short and to the point. Four single-seeded nutlets were formed.

Status

Heliotropium pannifolium is known only from the holotype, built in 1808 by William John Burchell at the outflow of the Broad collected commodity in the region of Sandy Bay. This specimen is now in the Kew Herbarium. The flowers are, however, been almost completely destroyed by insects.