Coriaria plumosa, commonly known as feathery tutu, mountain tutu, and small-leaved tutu, is a species of shrub in the family Coriariaceae. It is endemic to New Zealand. Its range covers the North, South, and Stewart Islands. It is found in mountainous areas. It was first described by the New Zealand botanist Walter Oliver in 1942. This species, and all Coriaria species, are poisonous, especially the seeds. C. plumosas 2023 assessment in the New Zealand Threat Classification System was "Not Threatened".
Coriaria plumosa is a bushy shrub in the family Coriariaceae. It usually reaches a height of and consists of many erect branches. It has long, dark-green, narrow, and pointed leaves, which are 6âÂÂ8 mm long by 1.5âÂÂ3 mm wide. The pedicels are 1 mm long. Fruit is black in colour. This species, and all Coriaria species, are poisonous, especially the seeds.
Coriaria plumosa was first described by the New Zealand botanist Walter Oliver in 1942. There is one recognised heterotypic synonym of the species: Coriaria lurida var. parviflora described in 1926 by Leonard Cockayne and Harry Allan. Coriaria has one of the most disjunct distribution areas in the world, which makes it one of the most unusual genera among flowering plants. There are seven New Zealand members of the Coriaria genus. This genus is sparingly found in four main distribution areas in the world, and occurs in the Mediterranean Basin, East Asia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, and some parts in the Americas. Good (1930) identified three groups within Coriaria, A, B, and C, based on geographic distribution and other morphological characteristics.
The etymology (word origin) of C. plumosas genus name, Coriaria, derives from the Latin meaning 'hide', possibly originating from the use of this genus in leather tanning. The specific epithet (second part of the scientific name), plumosa, means 'feathered', it comes from the Latin , meaning 'feathers'. The species is commonly known as feathery tutu, mountain tutu, and small-leaved tutu. The MÃÂori language name 'tutu' has cognates found in other Eastern Polynesian languages such as Tahitian and Cook Islands MÃÂori which use the word to describe the unrelated Colubrina asiatica, a plant that has visual similarity to Coriaria. The word 'tutu' has been used colloquially as a verb.
New Zealand has the highest concentration of Coriaria species. C. plumosa is endemic to New Zealand. Its range covers the North, South, and Stewart Islands. It only occurs south of Mount Taranaki and the Raukà «mara Range. C. plumosas 2023 conservation status in the New Zealand Threat Classification System was "Not Threatened".
Coriaria plumosa is found in mountainous and subalpine environments. It can be found on gravel slopes and along streams.
Coriaria plumosas seeds are dispersed by fruit-eating animals (frugivores). The pollination strategy of Coriaria is uncertain. Burrows (1995) claimed the flowers are pollinated by birds and insects. Thomphson & Gornal (1995) claimed that Coriaria is wind-pollinated.
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