Welwitschia mirabilis

Welwitschia mirabilis, Namib Desert, Angola

Female cones; Welwitschia Plains, Erongo Region, Namibia

Taxonavigation

Taxonavigation: Gnetales
Superregnum: Eukaryota Regnum: Plantae Divisio: Tracheophyta Classis: Gnetopsida Ordo: Gnetales

Familia: Welwitschiaceae
Genus: Welwitschia
Species: Welwitschia mirabilis
Subspecies: W. m. subsp. mirabilis – W. m. subsp. namibiana

и́мя

Welwitschia mirabilis Hook.f., Gard. Chron. 1862: 71. 1862.

• Typus: Angola: Cabo Negro, 4.9.1859, F.Welwitsch s.n. (♀) (Lectotypus: K, isolectotypus: LISU, PRE (photo), designated by Leuenberger, Willdenowia 31: 374. 2001)

Distribution

Native distribution areas:
Continental: Africa Regional: South Tropical Africa Angola. Regional: Southern Africa Namibia. References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDGW – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition

References

• Hooker, J.D. 1863. On Welwitschia, a new Genus of Gnetaceae. Trans. Linn. Soc. London 24(1): 1–48, t. 1–14. BHL Reference page. 
• Steyn, E.M.A. & Smith, G.F. 1999. Welwitschiaceae. Species Plantarum: Flora of the World 3: 1–8. PDF
• Leuenberger, B.E. 2001. Welwitschia mirabilis (Welwitschiaceae), male cone characters and a new subspecies. Willdenowia 31(2): 357–381. DOI: 10.3372/wi.31.31206 Reference page. 
• Bustard, L. 1990. The ugliest plant of the world: the story of Welwitschia mirabilis. Kew Magazine 7: 85–90. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8748.1990.tb00600.x
• Carlquist, S. & Gowans, D.A. 1995. Secondary growth and wood histology of Welwitschia. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 118(2): 107–121. DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.1995.tb00464.x
• Henschel, J.R. & Seely, M.K. 2004. Long-term growth patterns of Welwitschia mirabilis, a long-lived plant of the Namib Desert (including a bibliography). Plant Ecology 150(1–2): 7–26. DOI: 10.1023/A:1026512608982
• Herppich, W.B., Flach, B.M.-T., Willert, D.J.v. & Herppich, M. 1996. Field investigations of photosynthetic activity, gas exchange and water potential at different leaf ages in Welwitschia mirabilis during a severe drought. Flora 191(1): 59–66. DOI: 10.1016/S0367-2530(17)30690-4
• Rodin, R.J. 1953. Distribution of Welwitschia mirabilis. American Journal of Botany 40(4): 280–285. DOI: 10.2307/2438668
• Willert, D.J.v. 1994. Welwitschia mirabilis Hook. fil.- das Überlebenswunder der Namibwüste [the survival miracle of the Namib desert]. Naturwissenschaften 81: 430–442.
• Willert, D.J.v. & Wagner-Douglas, U. 1994. Water relations, CO2 exchange, water-use efficiency and growth of Welwitschia mirabilis Hook. fil. in three contrasting habitats of the Namib desert. Botanica Acta 107(5): 291–299. DOI: 10.1111/j.1438-8677.1994.tb00798.x
• Tropicos.org 2014. Welwitschia mirabilis . Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2014 Mar. 22.
• Govaerts, R. et al. 2019. Welwitschia mirabilis in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2019 May 18.
• International Plant Names Index. 2019. Welwitschia mirabilis. Published online. Accessed May 18 2019.

Vernacular names

Afrikaans: Tweeblad-kan nie dood
български: Велвичия
català: Welwítsquia
čeština: Welwitschie podivná
Deutsch: Welwitschie
English: Welwitschia
suomi: Ikilehti
עברית: ולויטשיה
hornjoserbsce: Prawa welwićija
magyar: Velvícsia
日本語: ウェルウィッチア
ქართული: ველვიჩია
മലയാളം: വെല്‍വിറ്റ്ഷിയ മിരാബിലിസ്
Nederlands: tweeblaarkanniedood
norsk: Welwitschia
polski: Welwiczja Przedziwna
русский: Вельвичия
svenska: Welwitschia
中文（简体）‎: 百岁兰
中文（繁體）‎: 百歲蘭

For more multimedia, look at Welwitschia mirabilis on Wikimedia Commons.