{{Short description|Species of carnivorous plant}} {{Speciesbox | image = 9-Drosera adelae with Plantlets.jpg | status = R | status_system = QLDNCA | genus = Drosera | display_parents = 2 | parent = Drosera sect. Prolifera | species = adelae | authority = F.Muell. }}
'''''Drosera adelae''''', commonly known as the '''lance-leaved sundew''', is a carnivorous plant in the genus ''Drosera'' that is endemic to Queensland, Australia.
==Description== thumb|left|Leaf close up showing mucilaginous glands ''Drosera adelae'' is a tropical perennial plant that produces long, sword-shaped leaves in a basal rosette. The leaves, like most other ''Drosera'' species, are covered with sticky, stalked tentacles that secrete the prey-capturing glue.<ref name="McPherson 2">McPherson, Stewart. 2008. ''Glistening Carnivores''. Poole, Dorset, England: Redfern Natural History Productions. pp. 212-214.</ref> Tentacle movement in this species, unlike other ''Drosera'', is minimal and slow to the point of being barely noticeable.<ref name="McPherson 1">McPherson, Stewart. 2008. ''Glistening Carnivores''. Poole, Dorset, England: Redfern Natural History Productions. p. 35.</ref> The leaves are narrowly lanceolate and are typically {{convert|10|-|25|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long and 7–10 mm wide. The lower surface of the leaves are glabrous and petioles are either very short or absent. Inflorescences are one-sided raceme and up to {{convert|35|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, bearing many red, reddish orange, or cream coloured flowers from June to November. The five petals produce a perfect pentagon shape.<ref name="Lowrie">Lowrie, Allen. 1998. [https://books.google.com/books?id=DRzVA7A2JEAC&pg=PA132 ''Carnivorous Plants of Australia: Volume 3'']. Nedlands, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. pp. 132-135.</ref>
''Drosera adelae'' reproduces rapidly by asexual means, generating new plantlets from the spreading roots, which means this species is often found in large clumps.<ref name="McPherson 2" />
This species has a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 30, though a cultivated cytotype of the species had been reported as having 2n = 28, which botanist Fernando Rivadavia suggested may represent different forms of the species.<ref name="Rivadavia 2005">Rivadavia, Fernando. 2005. [http://www.carnivorousplants.org/cpn/articles/CPNv34n3p85_91.pdf New chromosome numbers for ''Drosera'' L. (Droseraceae).] ''Carnivorous Plant Newsletter'', 34(3): 85-91.</ref>
==Distribution and habitat== thumb|left|Range of ''D. adelae'' in the wildthumb|right|Flower (approximately 3 mm across) ''Drosera adelae'' typically grows in the densely shaded margins of the northeastern Australian rainforests in sandy soils along creek banks or on wet rocks near waterfalls. The species is native to Rockingham Bay, Hinchinbrook Island in Queensland, Australia. It shares similar habitats with the other two closely related Queensland ''Drosera'': ''D. schizandra'' and ''D. prolifera''.<ref name="McPherson 2" /> Together the species are informally known as the sisters of Queensland. thumb|left|Flovering D.adeale in the wild ==Botanical History== ''Drosera adelae'' was first described by Ferdinand von Mueller in volume 4 of his work ''Fragmenta phytographiæ Australiæ'', published in 1864.<ref name="IPNI">{{IPNI|id=321769-1|accessdate=14 August 2011}}</ref> A later infraspecific taxon, described by Ludwig Diels in his 1909 work published in a volume of ''Das Pflanzenreich'' as ''D. adelae'' var. ''latior'' F.Muell. ex Diels is now considered to be a synonym of ''D. schizandra''.<ref name="Schlauer">Schlauer, J. 2011. [http://www.omnisterra.com/bot/cp_home.cgi World Carnivorous Plant List - Nomenclatural Synopsis of Carnivorous Phanerogamous Plants] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160918161537/http://www.omnisterra.com/bot/cp_home.cgi |date=2016-09-18 }}. Accessed online: 14 August 2011.</ref> thumb|left|Young plants of D.adelae have rounded leaves ==Cultivation== Though it is a tropical plant, ''D. adelae'' is somewhat tolerant of frost and can return from its roots after short periods of cold temperatures just below the freezing point.<ref name="Savage Garden 1">D'Amato, Peter. 1998. ''The Savage Garden: Cultivating Carnivorous Plants''. Berkeley, California: Ten Speed Press. p. 51.</ref> It can be grown in brighter light, less humidity, and cooler temperatures than its closely allied relatives, ''D. prolifera'' and ''D. schizandra''. In low light conditions, the leaves are typically greener and the plant can grow to be a foot in diameter, but brighter light will cause the plants to produce shorter, bronze coloured leaves.<ref name="Savage Garden 2">D'Amato, Peter. 1998. ''The Savage Garden: Cultivating Carnivorous Plants''. Berkeley, California: Ten Speed Press. p. 144.</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons-inline|2=''Drosera adelae''}} *[https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/761319 The original description] of the species by Ferdinand von Mueller in 1864 {{Taxonbar|from=Q145561}}
Category:Carnivorous plants of Australia Category:Caryophyllales of Australia adelae Category:Flora of Queensland Category:Plants described in 1864 Category:Rare flora of Australia Category:Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller