Sauropus 
L/B 0.8-1.5, base cordate, apex obtuse to acute with 
a minute mucro. Flowers dioecious or monoecious; 
males in fascicles in the outer axils; females solitary 
in the axils on pedicels 2-3 mm long; tepals 
spathulate, 2-3 mm long. Capsule grey, smooth, 
ovoid-ellipsoid, 7-9 mm long, 7-8 mm diam. Seeds 
brown, c. 6 mm long, smooth, minutely areolate, 
sharply angled. Flowering and fruiting: Oct - July. 
Fig. 78 
Apparently endemic to the central and western 
Top End of the NT. Relatively common in the DR on 
sandy or other well drained soils in open forest and 
woodland. 
S. glaucus (F.Muell.) Airy Shaw 
Phyllanthus glaucus (F.Muell.) Baillon 
An erect, glabrous multistemmed subshrub to 50 
cm tall. Stems striate with fine grooves, foliose 
throughout. Stipules c. 0.5 mm long, subulate. Leaves 
blades linear, 4-14 mm long, 0.5-0.6 mm wide, 
L/B 8-23. Flowers dioecious or monoecious; males 
1-2 in axils, on pedicels c. 1 mm long; tepals 
spathulate, c. 1.5 mm long, connate for 1/2 their 
length; females solitary in axils, on pedicels 
c. 5 mm long; tepals spathulate, 6-12 mm long; 
styles spreading, almost entire. Capsule grey, 
smooth, ellipsoid, 10-12 mm long, c. 7 mm diam. 
Seeds grey when mature, c. 8 mm long, with a thin 
firm spongy, irregularly pitted surface, margins 
sharply angled with irregular scallops. Flowering and 
fruiting: Aug - May. Fig. 78 
Probably an NT endemic; widespread in the Top 
End. In the DR this species is known from Litchfield 
NP where it occurs on fine sandy soils on sandstone 
and from south of Bynoe Harbour and east of the Bark 
Hut Inn. 
S. ochrophyllus (Benth.) Airy Shaw 
Phyllanthus ochrophyllus Benth. 
An erect glabrous single-stemmed subshrub to 
30 cm tall. Stems flattened, foliage phyllanthoid or 
plants foliose throughout. Stipules filiform, c. 0.5 mm 
long. Leaf blades concolorous, elliptic, obovate or 
ovate, 8-47 mm long, 4-30 mm wide, L/B 1.2-2.6, 
base broadly cuneate, apex acute or obtuse with a 
minute mucro. Flowers dioecious or monoecious, 
solitary in the axils, yellow-green, pendulous, on 
pedicels 2-3 mm long, tepals narrowly lanceolate, 
lacking a distinct midrib; males with tepals c. 3 mm 
long, apex slightly recurved; females with tepals 
c. 4 mm long, styles erect, c. 2 mm long, shortly 
connate at base, bifid. Capsule ovoid, c. 9 mm diam. 
Seeds not seen. Flowering and fruiting: Oct - Dec. 
Fig. 78 
EUPHORBIACEAE abe) 
1/25cm 
Poranthera microphylla 
Fig. 77 
Apparently endemic to the DR, but poorly collected. 
This species occurs on well drained soils in open 
forest and woodland. 
S. ‘Darwin’ 
An erect glabrous single-stemmed subshrub to 
50 cm tall. Stems striate, finely fluted, unbranched 
or occasionally branched at an acute angle, with 
0-several leaves. Stipules 2-2.5 mm long. Leaves 
widely spaced, blades blue-green when fresh, 
variable in shape, lanceolate, linear, to elliptic or 
ovate, 30-55 mm long, 3-27 mm wide, L/B 1.3-13, 
base attenuate, obtuse or cuneate, apex acute to 
obtuse. Flowers dioecious, or monoecious on 
separate branches; males in fascicles of 1-several 
flowers in axils on leafless branches; tepals yellow- 
green, unequal, elliptic, 2-2.5 mm long; stamens 3, 
anthers fused to the angles of rhomboid structure on 
a short androphore, axis of androphore exceeding the 
anthers; females solitary in the axils, often on leafless 
branches; pedicels 5-9 mm long; tepals yellow-green, 
unequal, elliptic, 3-4 mm long. Capsule pale green, 
ellipsoid, indistinctly 3-lobed, c. 8 mm long, 10 mm 
diam. Seeds stramineous, c. 7 mm long. Flowering 
and fruiting: Oct - Jan. Fig. 78 
Apparently endemic to the Top End, and common 
but poorly collected. This species occurs on a variety 
of soils in open forest and woodland. 
S. ‘Melville Is.’ 
An erect multistemmed subshrub to 50 cm tall. 
Stems angular, finely striate, foliose throughout. 
