home   about   search

biodiversity explorer

the web of life in southern Africa

Genus: Protea (sugarbushes)

Life > eukaryotes > Archaeoplastida > Chloroplastida > Charophyta > Streptophytina > Plantae (land plants) > Tracheophyta (vascular plants) > Euphyllophyta > Lignophyta (woody plants) > Spermatophyta (seed plants) > Angiospermae (flowering plants) > Eudicotyledons > Order: Proteales > Family: Proteaceae

About 112 species, found in Africa but mainly in southern Africa where there have been about 89 species recorded.

Species native to southern Africa

List from Rebelo (1995), Plants of Southern Africa - an Online Checklist (SANBI), Flora of Zimbabwe and Flora of Mozambique.

Section: Hypocephalae (Rodent Sugarbushes)
 

Protea amplexicaulis (Clasping-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea cordata (Heart-leaf sugarbush)

 
 

Protea decurrens (Linear-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea humiflora (Patent-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea subulifolia (Awl-leaf sugarbush)

Section: Leiocephalae: Grassland sugarbushes
 

Protea caffra (Common sugarbush)

 

Protea dracomontana (Drakensberg sugarbush)

 

Protea nubigena (Cloud sugarbush)

 
 

Protea parvula (Dainty sugarbush)

 

Protea petiolaris (Sickle-leaf sugarbush)

Recorded from Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

 
 

Protea simplex (Dwarf grassland sugarbush)

Section: Leiocephalae: Shaving-brush sugarbushes  
 

Protea glabra (Clanwilliam sugarbush)

 

Protea inopina (Large-nut sugarbush)

 

Protea nitida (Wagon tree, Waboom)

 

Protea rupicola (Krantz sugarbush)

Section: Paludosae (Red sugarbush)
 

Protea enervis (Chimanimani sugarbush)

The only species in this section, found only in the Chimanimani Mountains of Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

Section: Patentiflorae (Mountain sugarbushes)
 

Protea angolensis (Northern woodland sugarbush)

Recorded from Zimbabwe and Mozambique. See Flora of Zimbabwe, where it is split into two variations - angolensis and divaricata.

 

Protea comptonii (Saddleback sugarbush)

 

Protea curvata (Barberton sugarbush)

 

Protea laetans (Blyde sugarbush)

 

Protea madiensis (Tall woodland sugarbush)

Recorded from Mozambique.

 

Protea rubropilosa (Transvaal sugarbush)

Section: Lasiocephalae (Savanna sugarbushes)
 

Protea gaguedi (African sugarbush)

 

Protea welwitschii (Dwarf savanna sugarbush)

Section: Cristatae (Moorland sugarbushes)
 

Protea asymmetrica (Inyanga sugarbush)

Recorded from Zimbabwe.

 

Protea wentzeliana (Wentzel's sugarbush)

Recorded from Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

Section: Cynaroideae
 

Protea cynaroides (King sugarbush, King protea)

Section: Paracynaroides (Snow Sugarbushes)
 

Protea cryophila (Snowball protea)

 

Protea pruinosa (Frosted sugarbush)

 

Protea scabriuscula (Hoary sugarbush)

 

Protea scolopendrifolia (Harts-tongue-fern sugarbush)

Section: Ligulatae (Spoon-bract Sugarbushes)
 

Protea burchellii (Burchell's sugarbush)

 

Protea compacta (Bot River sugarbush)

 

Protea eximia (Broad-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea longifolia (Long-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea obtusifolia (Limestone sugarbush)

 

Protea pudens (Bashful sugarbush)

 

Protea roupelliae (Silver sugarbush)

 

Protea susannae (Stink-leaf sugarbush)

Section: Melliferae ('True' Sugarbushes)
 

Protea aristata (Ladismith sugarbush)

 

Protea lanceolata (Lance-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea repens (Common sugarbush)

Section: Speciosae (Bearded Sugarbushes)
 

Protea coronata (Green sugarbush)

 

Protea grandiceps (Red sugarbush)

 

Protea holosericea (Saw-edge sugarbush)

 

Protea laurifolia (Grey-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea lepidocarpodendron (Black-beard sugarbush)

 

Protea lorifolia (Strap-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea magnifica (Queen protea)

 

Protea neriifolia (Narrow-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea speciosa (Brown-beard sugarbush)

 

Protea stokoei (Pink sugarbush)

Section: ? (Dwarf-tufted sugarbushes)
 

Protea aspera (Rough-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea denticulata (Tooth-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea lorea (Thong-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea piscina (Visgat sugarbush)

 

Protea restionifolia (Reed-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea scabra (Sandpaper-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea scorzonerifolia (Channel-leaf sugarbush)

Section: Exsertae (White Sugarbushes)
 

Protea aurea (Common shuttlecock sugarbush)

 

Protea lacticolor (Hottentot sugarbush)

 

Protea mundii (Forest sugarbush)

 

 

Protea punctata (Water sugarbush)

 

Protea subvestita (Waterlily sugarbush)

 

Protea venusta (Creeping beauty)

Section: Obvallatae
 

Protea caespitosa (Bishop sugarbush)

Section: ? (Eastern ground sugarbushes)
 

Protea foliosa (Leafy sugarbush)

 

Protea intonsa (Tufted sugarbush)

 

Protea montana (Swartberg sugarbush)

 
 

Protea tenax (Tenacious sugarbush)

 

Protea vogtsiae (Kouga sugarbush)

Section: Microgeantae (Western Ground Sugarbushes)
 

Protea acaulos (Common ground sugarbush)

 

Protea angustata (Kleinmond sugarbush)

 

Protea convexa (Large-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea laevis (Smooth-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea revoluta (Roll-leaved sugarbush)

Section: ? (Shale Sugarbushes)
 

Protea mucronifolia (Dagger-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea odorata (Swartland sugarbush)

Section: Pinifoliae (Rose Sugarbushes)
 

Protea acuminata (Black-rim sugarbush)

 

Protea canaliculata (Groove-leaf sugarbush)

 

Protea nana (Mountain-rose sugarbush)

 

Protea pityphylla (Ceres sugarbush)

 

Protea scolymocephala (Thistle sugarbush)

 

Protea witzenbergiana (Swan sugarbush)

Section: ? (Penduline Sugarbushes)
 

Protea effusa (Scarlet sugarbush)

 

Protea namaquana (Kamiesberg sugarbush)

 

Protea pendula (Nodding sugarbush)

 

Protea recondita (Hidden sugarbush)

 

Protea sulphurea (Sulphur sugarbush)

Publications (by date)

  • Rebelo, T. 1995. Sasol Proteas. A Field Guide to the Proteas of Southern Africa. Fernwood Press, Vlaeberg, Cape Town.
  • Roeta F. 2006. Ecology and systematics of South African Protea-associated Ophiostoma species. PhD thesis, University of Stellenbosch. Download here
  • Roets F, Wingfield MJ, Crous PW, Dreyer LL. 2007. Discovery of fungus-mite mutualism in a unique niche. Environmental Entomology 36(5): 1226-1237. doi: 10.1603/0046-225X(2007)36[1226:DOFMIA]2.0.CO;2 [Protea floral heads contain fungi of the economically important genus Ophiostoma, spores of which are dispersed by mites. Invertebrates found in flower heads were identified and tested for presence of spores.]