Diario del proyecto Muraltia - a guide to Purplegorses

9,767 observations by 1,562 observers

102 species

15,627 identifications by 377 identifiers

4,586 observations (47%) are Research Grade
2,309 observations (24%) identified to species level but need confirmation.
2,836 observations (29%) are at genus or section level (help ID them here)

Top Species ( > 50 observations)

2035 Muraltia heisteria Prickly Purplegorse
1521 Muraltia spinosa Spiny Tortoiseberry

391 Muraltia alopecuroides Foxy Purplegorse
357 Muraltia ericifolia Heathy Purplegorse
339 Muraltia satureioides Sand Purplegorse

218 Muraltia squarrosa Hornless Purplegorse
137 Muraltia macropetala Bigflower Purplegorse
114 Muraltia ononidifolia Restharrow Purplegorse
112 Muraltia ciliaris Spiderweb Purplegorse
102 Muraltia thunbergii Leafy Purplegorse

98 Muraltia trinervia Threevein Purplegorse
84 Muraltia ericoides Heathleaf Purplegorse
81 Muraltia dispersa Karoo Purplegorse
73 Muraltia rhamnoides Frizzy Purplegorse

65 Muraltia mitior Spinetip Purplegorse
61 Muraltia juniperifolia Juniper Purplegorse
59 Muraltia alba White Purplegorse
56 Muraltia muraltioides Sidepipe Purplegorse
53 Muraltia filiformis Thread Purplegorse
53 Muraltia knysnaensis Garden Route Purplegorse

Top Observers ( > 100 observations)

1 tonyrebelo 892
2 nicky 284
3 ydnewp2 197
4 petrabroddle 137
5 knysna_wildflowers 136
6 angelanoske 135
7 botaneek 126
8 andrewm 126
9 sharndrecoutriers 116
10 felix_riegel 113
11 steven_molteno 111
12 sandraf 110
13 hhodgson 105
14 gigilaidler 100

Top Species Observers ( > 20 species)

1 botaneek 45
2 knysna_wildflowers 42
3 andrewm 33
4 tonyrebelo 31
5 felix_riegel 26
6 nicky 26
7 sandraf 23
8 ish_crew 23
9 gigilaidler 23
10 petrabroddle 22
11 mr_fab 20

Top Identifiers ( > 200 Identifications)

1 andrewm 1,575
2 jeremygilmore 792
3 steven_molteno 472
4 knysna_wildflowers 450
5 tonyrebelo 414
6 dianastuder 395
7 sedgesrock 345
8 cmerry 343
9 venturefoth 320
10 botaneek 309
11 rion_c 279

The standard reference for Muraltia is here:

https://archive.org/details/botanysupplement02unse/page/n245/mode/2up?q=acicularis

Levyns 1954 The genus Muraltia. J S Afr Bot: Supp 2.

Some quotes before you get involved (make sure that you are ready):

"Every botanist who tries the experiment will, we are sure, declare the determination of the species of this genus a very difficult, and often an almost desperate task. owing not only to their great uniformity of habit ..."

"The leaves in Muraltia are highly variable and show marked changes in response to changes of habitat ... are useless as a primary means of separating species."
"the changes taking place in the flower between the time the corolla emerges from the calyx and the moment of pollination ... rapid and very unequal development of the parts of each organ during this time makes it clear that when describing species comparative measurements of the floral parts must be made at the same developmental stage if such measurements are to have any significance. Measurements given in most previous works on Muraltia are almost meaningless because the stage of floral development is not stated"

The genus has two subgenera, but no sections are recognized. (although there are alliances, clear groups are not obvious),

Subgenus Psiloclada Leaves solitary: flowers with distinct, often long pedicels; inner sepals much longer than the outer: attachment of the crest long, almost vertical: capsule often cernuous, with or without 4 short horn-like processes at the apex, the horns never long and_slender.
Psiloclada

Subgenus Muraltia Leaves usually fascicled, sometimes solitary: flowers sessile or with short pedicels; inner sepals usually slightly longer than the outer: crest attached in various ways: capsule never cernuous, often with long horn-like processes at the apex, occasionally without horns.
Muraltia

And from then on it is the shape and size and hairiness of the calyx, and the corolla and the carina, and surprizingly enough - the leaves.

Note:
stamens are always 7: nothing useful there.
The corolla has 3 petals, the remaining two forming the carina (keel) with its crest. The carina and crest are what you need to photograph most carefully (but dont forget the sepals).