Peraxilla colensoi, the scarlet mistletoe, is a shrubby parasitic plant composed of broad, leathery leaves that grow up to 8 cm long and have a red edge.

The plant can grow up to 3 meters tall and are often located in low altitudes throughout the North and South Islands of New Zealand.

The fruit produced is a small, round yellow color and the leathery leaves of the shrub will fall and cover the forest floor.

[1] Peraxilla colensoi also has fruits that grow to be small and oval shaped and are a yellowish golden color when they ripen.

In order for the seed to develop it must land on a branch so it can attach with its haustoria, which are sucker like roots.

[1] Peraxilla colensoi is browsed by the common brushtail possum, an invasive species in New Zealand.

The increase in browsing by this animal has caused a great depletion in the plant species, leading to it possibly being endangered.

[1] The caterpillar of the endemic moth Zelleria maculata mines the leaves as well as feeds on the inside flower buds of P. colensi and as a result can affect the production of seeds of this plant.

These birds excrete these seeds which hopefully will land on a branch and attach through its adaptive sucker roots known as haustoria.