# Stirlingia simplex

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***Stirlingia simplex*** is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to [Western Australia](/source/Western_Australia).

## Description

A [woody](/source/Wood) [perennial](/source/Perennial_plant), *S. simplex* can grow as a [shrub](/source/Shrub) or as [suckering](/source/Sucker_(botany)) [herb](/source/Herb) with short-lived stems arising from a perennial rootstock. Stems may be up to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) long, and the plant as a whole grows to a height of 10 to 60 cm 0, rarely to 1 metre (3.3 ft). It has soft leaves that bifurcate repeatedly into lobes, with the final lobes measuring from 2 to 20 mm long. Flowers are cream or yellow, and occur in dense heads from 10 to 15 mm in diameter, atop [scapes](/source/Scape_(botany)) up to 60 centimetres (24 in) tall.[1][2]

## Taxonomy

The species was first published by [John Lindley](/source/John_Lindley) in his 1839 *[A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony](/source/A_Sketch_of_the_Vegetation_of_the_Swan_River_Colony)*, based on unspecified material. Lindley commented that it "resembles a [Sanicula](/source/Sanicula)".[3]

Since that time, it has had a fairly straightforward taxonomic history. It has only two synonyms:

- [Carl Meissner](/source/Carl_Meissner) published *S. capillifolia* in 1855, but this was declared a [taxonomic synonym](/source/Taxonomic_synonym) of *S. simplex* by [Alex George](/source/Alex_George_(botanist)) in 1995.[4][5]
- In 1884 [Ferdinand von Mueller](/source/Ferdinand_von_Mueller) proposed to transfer *[Stirlingia](/source/Stirlingia)* to *Simsia*, the original, albeit illegal, name for the genus. His transfer was not accepted, and *Simsia simplex* is now a [nomenclatural synonym](/source/Nomenclatural_synonym) of *Stirlingia simplex*.[5][6]

## Distribution and habitat

It occurs throughout much of the [Southwest Botanic Province](/source/Southwest_Botanic_Province) of Western Australia, from [Eneabba](/source/Eneabba,_Western_Australia) in the north, south to [Waroona](/source/Waroona,_Western_Australia) and east to [Hyden](/source/Hyden,_Western_Australia). It grows in a variety of soils, amongst [proteaceous](/source/Proteaceae)-[myrtaceous](/source/Myrtaceae) [heath](/source/Heath_(habitat)) and [eucalypt woodland](/source/Eucalypt_woodland), and prefers seasonally wet areas.[1][2]

## Ecology

It is not considered threatened.[1]

## References

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Stirlingia simplex](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stirlingia_simplex) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stirlingia_simplex?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.