Synonymisation of taxa, correction of a misapplied name and an updated key for the Western Australian Leptospermum erubescens species group (Myrtaceae: Leptospermeae)

Abstract

Leptospermum J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. is a large genus of Australian Myrtaceae. The last major revision of the genus was undertaken by Thompson (1989) who recognised 79 species, including 27 that were newly described in that paper. Since that time, the taxonomy has remained relatively stable with just a few new species added (Bean 1992; Lyne 1993; Lyne & Crisp 1996; Bean 2004). In her revision, Thompson (1989) recognised that the group might consist of multiple genera and indeed, molecular work has since revealed the genus to be polyphyletic (O’Brien et al. 2000; Binks et al. 2022). A major reclassification of the genus is currently underway that will resolve this polyphyly through the recognition of four additional genera. However, because that work is still ongoing, we continue to treat the focal species in this paper as Leptospermum.