Moraea lewisiae subsp. secunda

    Moraea lewisiae subsp. secunda
    Author: Ivan Lätti
    Photographer: Carolyn Etsebeth

    Moraea lewisiae subsp. secunda is a slender perennial that reaches heights around 40 cm. Three long, narrow leaves grow from the stem.

    The flowers grow in small groups, the yellow corollas above green, leaf-like, leathery spathes. There are six tepals in each flower, positioned in two whorls of three. The tepals are about oblong with rounded tips and greenish midribs. Flowers open in the afternoon.

    The subspecies distribution is in the Western and Northern Cape. The photo was taken in the Biedouw Valley in September.

    The habitat is mainly dry fynbos and renosterveld. The subspecies is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).

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