Protea grandiceps

Protea grandiceps, commonly known as rooisuikerbos, suikerbos or red sugarbush, is a flowering shrub that belongs to the Protea genus and is native to south western parts of South Africa. The shrub was listed as a near threatened species in 2006 according to the South African National Biodiversity Institute.

Description
The shrub is round and grows 2 m high and blooms from September to January. Fire destroys the plant but the seeds survive. The seed is stored in a cap and spread by the wind. The plant is unisexual. Pollination occurs through the action of birds. The tree's national number is 89.2.

Taxonomy
The species was first formally described by the botanist Leopold Trattinnick, the specific epithet means large head and is derived from the Latin words grandis meaning great or large and ceps meaning head in reference to the flower-heads.

Distribution
The plant is endemic to South Africa and is found in the Cape Peninsula, Hottentots Holland Mountains, Riviersonderend Mountains, Langeberg, Outeniqua Mountains, Tsitsikamma Mountains, Winterhoek Mountains and Kamanassie Mountains where it is commonly situated on stony crevices on dry upper mountain slopes at elevations of 1200 to 1700 m. It is spread over a total area of around 652 km2 composed of fragmented populations.