| Metrosideros fulgens | |
|---|---|
| |
| Metrosideros fulgens produces brilliant red flowers in winter | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | Metrosideros |
| Species: | M. fulgens
|
| Binomial name | |
| Metrosideros fulgens Sol. ex Gaertn.
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Metrosideros scandens | |
Metrosideros fulgens (scarlet rātā, rātā vine[1] or in Māori akatawhiwhi[2]) is a forest liana or vine endemic to New Zealand. It occurs in coastal and lowland forest throughout the North Island, on the west coast of the South Island and on the Three Kings Islands north of Cape Reinga. It is one of a number of New Zealand Metrosideros species which live out their lives as vines, unlike the northern rata (M.robusta), which generally begins as a hemi-epiphyte and grows into a huge tree. Scarlet rātā is one of the better-known species of rātā vines, because it flowers in autumn or winter, and is often highly visible on well-lit host trees along forest roads, with vibrant displays of large red flowers (sometimes orange or yellow) that rise above the forest canopy.
- ^ "Māori Plant Uses Database".
- ^ "Akatawhiwhi". Maori Dictionary. Retrieved 11 March 2015.