Proteas of West Africa

This covers the areas Angola, Zaire & western Zambia as modified from Beard

1. Bract hairless apart from fringe on margin goto 2

1' Bract hairy goto 6

2. Tepal limb hairless when open Pr madiensis

2' Tepal limb hairy when open goto 3

3. Tepal claw sparsely haired, bract with rounded or pointed tip, leaf 8-15 mm wide Pr kibarensis

3' Tepal claw densely shaggy haired, bract with pointed tip, leaf 2-10 mm wide Pr paludosa

3" Tepal claw hairless on outside, rarely with a fringe goto 4

4. Flowerhead large, tepal more than 60 mm long goto 5

4' Flowerhead medium - 100 mm across, tepal 40-55 mm long, leaf stalk 20-50 mm long Pr petiolaris

4" Flowerhead small - 80 mm across, tepal 35 mm long, leaf 10-30 mm wide, 4-6 X longer Pr minima

5. Leaf 20-80 mm wide, 100-160 mm long Pr angolensis

5. Leaf 10-30 mm wide, 120-160 mm long, bract collapsing on opening Pr rupestris

6. Tepal claw hairy on outside goto 7

6' Tepal claw hairless on outside, occ. with a fringe goto 17

7. Tepal limb 8-10 mm long [check]] goto 8

7' Tepal limb 12-15 mm long goto 10

7" Tepal limb 18 mm long goto 15

8. Tepal 30 mm long, leaves borne in tufts at ground level Pr ongotium

8' Tepal 20-30 mm long, leaves borne in tufts at ground level around flowerheads Pr matonchiana

8" Tepal 35-55 mm long, leaves born on branches goto 9

9. Flowerhead 60-100 mm across Pr micans

9' Flowerhead 100-150 mm across Pr madiensis

10. Leaf hairless goto 11

10' Leaf hairy goto 13

11. Leaf less than 10 mm wide Pr baumii

11' Leaf greater than 10 mm wide goto 12

12. Flowerhead small (< 50 mm long) Pr dekindtiana

12' Flowerhead large (> 50 mm long) Pr gaguedi

13. Bract tip pointed Pr poggei

13' Bract tip rounded goto 14

14. Bract with dense, silver hairs Pr argyrea

14' Bract with rusty or grey hairs Pr welwitschii

15. Leaf hairless Pr gaguedi

15' Leaf hairy goto 16

16. Petals less than 50 mm long Pr welwitschii

16' Petals more than 50 mm long Pr. micans

17. Tepal limb 30 mm long Pr rupestris

17' Tepal limb 20 mm long Pr angolensis

17" Tepal limb shorter than 15 mm long Pr flavopilosa

Remember to check your identification against a species description or herbarium specimen before accepting the name given by any key

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