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Tapinanthus rubromarginatus
Tapinanthus rubromarginatus, commonly known as red mistletoe, is a species of plant in the Loranthaceae family. The leaf margins are red as reflected by the specific name rubro-, meaning "red", and marginatus meaning "margin".
From the article Tapinanthus rubromarginatus on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
This is a deciduous, semi-parasitic aerial shrub, that attaches itself to the host plant by haustoria. The leaves are clustered in groups, and have narrow, dark red edges. The pinkish red flowers appear in spring, and the berries are similarly coloured.
Range & habitat
It is native to northern South Africa, northwards of the Vaal and Pongola Rivers, and to the uplands of western and northern Eswatini. The host plants include Protea afra, Protea roupelliae and Faurea saligna.
Wikipedia: “Range and hosts”
What it does
Sunbirds are attracted by the flower nectar and perform most of the pollination. The pistil and anthers make contact with the sunbird's crown feathers, as it probes the perianth tube. Several species of birds eat the sweet fruit, the seeds of which are coated with a thick, sticky glue. This glue sticks to the beak, and is wiped off on another branch, where the seed is deposited and eventually germinates.
== References ==
Wikipedia: “Reproduction”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Tapinanthus rubromarginatus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 595115.