2035.000 Protea L.

Description of the genus

Erect or prostrate suffrutices, shrubs or trees, up to 8 m. Leaves alternate or clustered near the ends of the branches simple, entire. Flowers in dense heads, surrounded by a conspicuous many-seriate involucre of bracts; bracts spirally arranged, very small in the outer series to as large as the flowers in the inner, sometimes brightly coloured. Style terminated by a linear pollen-presenter. Fruit an obconic achene, with the long straight brown hairs persistent.

Derivation of name: after Proteus, son of Poseidon, who was able to take on many different forms; referring to the great variability of the genus.

Worldwide: c. 100 species in the tropics and South Africa.

Zambia: 21 taxa.

The larvae of the following species of insect eat species of this genus:
Cinabra hyperbius (Banded emperor)
Ovios capensis (Cream cake, Sleepy tiger)
Protea welwitschii

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsProvincesContent
angolensis Welw. var. angolensis B,N,W,C,SNw,N,Lk,S,WDescription, Image
angolensis Welw. var. divaricata (Engl. & Gilg) BeardN,W,C,SNw,N,Lk,SDescription, Image
angolensis Welw. var. roseola Brummitt[LR-nt]NNDescription, Image
angolensis Welw. var. trichanthera (Baker) BrummittN,W,CCb,N,CDescription, Image
argyrea Hauman subsp. zambiana Chisumpa & Brummitt Nw
baumii Engl. & Gilg subsp. robusta Chisumpa & Brummitt Lp,N,Mc,C
gaguedi J.F. Gmel.N,W,C,SNw,N,Lk,SDescription, Image
heckmanniana Engl. var. heckmanniana [NrEnd]EMcDescription, Image
kibarensis Hauman subsp. cuspidata (Beard) Chisumpa & Brummitt [NrEnd][VU]EMc
madiensis Oliv. subsp. madiensis N,W,C,ECb,N,Mc,CDescription, Image
mafingensis (Chisumpa & Brummitt) Beard[NrEnd][VU]ENDescription
matonchiana Chisumpa & Brummitt [End][LR-nt]WNwDescription, Image
micans Welw. subsp. makutuensis Chisumpa & Brummitt Mc
micans Welw. subsp. micans NMcDescription, Image
micans Welw. subsp. trichophylla (Engl. & Gilg) Chisumpa & BrummittB,N,WNw,NDescription, Image
paludosa (Hiern) Engl. subsp. secundifolia (Hauman) Chisumpa & Brummitt WNwDescription, Image
petiolaris (Engl. ex Hiern) Baker & C.H. Wright subsp. elegans Chisumpa & BrummittN,W,C,ENw,N,Mc,CDescription, Image
petiolaris (Hiern) Baker subsp. petiolaris B,N,W,CNw,N,C,WDescription, Image
poggei Engl. subsp. mwinilungensis Chisumpa & Brummitt [DD]Nw
rupestris R.E. Fr.[LR-nt]N,W,CCb,Mc,C,LkDescription, Image
welwitschii Engl.B,N,W,C,ECb,Lp,N,Mc,C,Lk,WDescription, Image

Other sources of information about Protea:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Protea
Flora of Caprivi: Protea
Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Protea
Flora of Malawi: Protea
Flora of Mozambique: Protea
Flora of Zimbabwe: Protea
Flora of Zimbabwe: cultivated Protea

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Protea
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Protea
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Protea
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Protea
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Protea
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Protea
JSTOR Plant Science: Protea
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Protea
Plants of the World Online: Protea
Tropicos: Protea
Wikipedia: Protea

Copyright: Mike Bingham, Annette Willemen, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Mark Hyde, 2011-24

Bingham, M.G., Willemen, A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. and Hyde, M.A. (2024). Flora of Zambia: Genus page: Protea.
https://www.zambiaflora.com/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=485, retrieved 20 April 2024

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