Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws)

Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws)Anigozanthos flavidus (Tall Kangaroo Paw) Anigozanthos flavidus hybrid (Yellow Kangaroo Paw)

The genus Anigozanthos, commonly known as Kangaroo Paws, are a group of Southwest Australian plants of the bloodwort family Haemodoraceae. There are (at the time of writing 22 December 2023), 13 described species on the Atlas of Living Australia. There are of course some subspecies recognised by FloraBase as rare or endangered taxa.

The popularity of the Kangaroo Paw Anigozanthos, as both an garden plant and commercially produced cut-flower, has led to the many hybrids and development of cultivars.

The Australian Cultivar Registration Authority lists twenty seven registered names and descriptions of cultivars derived from the genus. A larger number of patents for these, accepted or granted ‘varieties’, are recorded in the Plant breeders’ rights database.⁴

Whilst the many subspecies are commonly known as kangaroo paw or catspaw, a further species, that was previously identified as Anigozanthos fuliginosus (Black Kangaroo Paw), was separated to a monotypic genus Macropidia fuliginosa.

The red-and-green kangaroo paw is the floral emblem of Western Australia.

Kangaroo Paw is a popular botanic garden and urban garden plant. In the following photo both the red and yellow form of the Kangaroo Paw can be seen planted on around the garden sculpture in the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney in New South Wales.

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• Scientific classification
• Kingdom: Plantae
• Phylum: Charophyta
• Class: Equisetopsida
• Subclass: Magnoliidae
• Superorder: Lilianae
• Order: Commelinales
• Family: Haemodoraceae
• Genus: Anigozanthos
• Species:
  • Anigozanthos ‘Bush Rebel’
  • Anigozanthos ‘Carmat’
  • Anigozanthos bicolor Endl.
  • Anigozanthos flavidus Redouté 
  • Anigozanthos gabrielae Domin
  • Anigozanthos humilis Lindl. 
  • Anigozanthos kalbarriensis Hopper
  • Anigozanthos manglesii D.Don 
  • Anigozanthos onycis A.S.George
  • Anigozanthos preissii Endl. 
  • Anigozanthos pulcherrimus Hook. 
  • Anigozanthos rufus Labill. 
  • Anigozanthos viridis Endl.
    
    there are many unranked Anigozanthos and hybrids

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Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws)Anigozanthos flavidus (Tall Kangaroo Paw) Anigozanthos flavidus hybrid (Yellow Kangaroo Paw)

FloraFlora in Australia Flora Index Acacia Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws) Annual Yellowtop Apium prostratum subsp. prostratum var filiforme Apple Bush (Pterocaulon sphacelatum) Australian Bluebell Australian Gossypium Banksia Batswing Coral Tree Billy Buttons Birdsville Indigo Blue Pincushion Bush Banana Callistemon Callitris drummondii (Drummond’s Cypress Pine) Calothamnus quadrifidus Cape Honeysuckle Cassia fistula (Golden Shower) Cattle Bush Common Heath Crotalaria Darwinia wittwerorum (Wittwer’s Mountain Bell) Daviesia oppositifolia (Rattle-pea) Desert Oaks Drumsticks Eremophila Eucalyptus Ficus Flannel Cudweed (Actinobole uliginosum) Georges Indigo Goatshead Burr (Sclerolaena bicornis) Golden Everlasting Goodenia Gossypium Grass and Grasses Grass Trees Grevillea Grey Germander Hakea Kapok Bush (Aerva javanica) Lambertia sp Leptospermum MacDonnell Ranges Cycad Maireana scleroptera Mexican Poppy Minnie Daisy Mistletoe Family Nardoo Native Apricot Nicotiana megalosiphon subspecies sessilifolia Nuytsia floribunda Orange Spade Flower Orchidaceae Parakeelyas (Calandrinia) Pebble Bush (Stylobasium spathulatum) Perennial Yellow Top Pink Everlasting Pink Rock Wort Poached Egg Daisy Portulaca Proteaceae Ptilotus Quandong Resurrection Fern Rosy Dock Ruby Saltbush Santalum Solanum Spike Centaury Spinifex Storkbill (Erodium cygnorum) Striped Mint Bush Sturt’s Desert Pea Sturt’s Desert Rose Tall Saltbush Tangled Leschenaultia Tar Vine Tribulus eichlerianus Upside-down Plant Urodon dasyphylla Variable Daisy Waratah (Telopea) Wertabona Daisy White Cedar (Melia azedarach) White Indigo White Paper Daisy Wild Passionfruit Wild Stock Woolly-Headed Burr Daisy Woolly Bush Yellow-keeled Swainsona

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