Abstract:
The Epacridaceae is essentially an Australian family of shrubs and small trees. The family contains some 30 genera and about 400 species (Willis 1966), chiefly of Australia and Tasmania, but with a few genera extending to New Zealand, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Malaya, Hawaii and one monotypic genus in South America. The classical arrangement of the Epacridaceae (Bentham 1869) is into two tribes, the Styphelieae and the Epacrideae. This division is based solely on fruit and ovary structure, and Watson (1967) after an examination of stem, leaf and inflorescence anatomy proposed a new classification. Watson divides the Epacridaceae into two subfamilies; the Richeoideae which contains three closely related genera Dracophyllum, Richea, and Sphenotoma; and the Epacridoideae which contains the rest. The Epacridoideae is further divided into tribes as follows (the number of genera in each tribe is indicated): Cosmelieae (3), Oligarrheneae (1), Wittsteinieae (1), Needhamielleae (1), Epacrideae (6), Styphelieae (14). New Zealand has seven genera (Pentachondra, Cyathodes, Leucopogon, Epacris, Archeria, Sprengelia and Dracophyllum) all of which are represented in Australia and Tasmania, and approximately 49 species, 44 being endemic (Allan 1961).
