Agathis ovata

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Agathis ovata
Agathis ovata - Atlanta Botanical Garden.JPG
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
(unranked): Gymnosperms
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Araucariaceae
Genus: Agathis
Species:
A. ovata
Binomial name
Agathis ovata
Moore ex Vieill. Warb.

Agathis ovata, the mountain kauri, is a species of conifer, genus Agathis in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only on the southwest Pacific island of New Caledonia. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Contents

Habitat

Agathis ovata is found only in New Caledonia on montane scrubland or in forests, although it requires a high level of rainfall so is generally restricted to between 150 and 1000 metres. Agathis were once found worldwide, although species such as this are now becoming very restricted. Other members of this family, Araucariaceae, include Hoop Pine ( Araucaria cunninghamii ), Queensland Kauri ( Agathis robusta ) and Cook Pine ( Araucaria columnaris ), of which the former two are found in rainforests and the latter in coastal forests of New Caledonia. Although these trees are at no risk, Agathis ovata is at a high risk of extinction from logging of tall forest trees and mining activities which clear its habitat.

Description

It is a medium tree, growing to 25 metres tall with a straight trunk in forests, although on the scrubland where it is more common it is a large shrub or small tree, branching from the base upwards with a broad, flat, crown and 1–8 metres tall. The bark has deep fissures, and is normally whitish-tan on the outside and red-brown on the underside.

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Araucariaceae – also known as araucarians – is an extremely ancient family of coniferous trees. The family achieved its maximum diversity during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, when it was distributed almost worldwide. Most of the Araucariaceae in the Northern Hemisphere vanished in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, and they are now largely confined to the Southern Hemisphere, except for a few species of Agathis in Southeast Asia.

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<i>Araucaria</i> genus of evergreen conifers in the family Araucariaceae

Araucaria is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae. There are 20 extant species in New Caledonia, Norfolk Island, eastern Australia, New Guinea, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, and Paraguay.

<i>Agathis</i> Genus of conifers in the kauri family Araucariaceae

Agathis, commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of 22 species of evergreen tree. The genus is part of the ancient conifer family Araucariaceae, a group once widespread during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, but now largely restricted to the Southern Hemisphere except for a number of extant Malesian Agathis.

<i>Araucaria heterophylla</i> species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae

Araucaria heterophylla is a species of conifer. As its vernacular name Norfolk Island pine implies, the tree is endemic to Norfolk Island, an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia. It is not a true pine, which belong to the family Pinaceae, but instead is a member of the genus Araucaria, in the family Araucariaceae which also contains the monkey-puzzle tree. Members of Araucaria occur across the South Pacific, especially concentrated in New Caledonia where 13 closely related and similar-appearing species are found. It is sometimes called a star pine, Polynesian pine, triangle tree or living Christmas tree, due to its symmetrical shape as a sapling.

New Caledonia rain forests

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<i>Agathis robusta</i> Species of conifer

Agathis robusta, the Queensland kauri (pine) or smooth-barked kauri, is a coniferous tree in the family Araucariaceae. It has a disjunct distribution, occurring in Papua New Guinea and Queensland, Australia. Populations in Papua New Guinea may be treated as the distinct species Agathis spathulata.

Horned parakeet Species of bird

The horned parakeet is a species of parrot in the genus Eunymphicus, in the family Psittaculidae. It is a medium-sized parrot endemic to New Caledonia. It is called "horned" because it has two black feathers that protrude from the head and have red tips.

<i>Agathis dammara</i> Species of conifer

Agathis dammara, commonly known as the Amboyna pine or almaciga (almasiga), is a coniferous timber tree native to the Philippines and to Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Sulawesi, and the Maluku Islands in Indonesia.

<i>Agathis orbicula</i> Species of conifer

Agathis orbicula is a coniferous tree native to the island of Borneo. It is found scattered throughout tropical rainforests and Kerangas forests. It is commonly found on hills and plateaus. The species is facing a high risk of extinction due to its scattered distribution and the decline in quality of its habitat.

<i>Agathis atropurpurea</i> Species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae endemic to Queensland, Australia

Agathis atropurpurea, the black kauri or blue kauri, is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only in Queensland, Australia and is threatened by habitat loss.

Agathis labillardieri is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is known by the common name New Guinea kauri. It is native to the island of New Guinea, where it is found in both Papua New Guinea and the side belonging to Indonesia.

<i>Araucaria biramulata</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria biramulata, the biramule araucaria, or piggyback araucaria, is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only in New Caledonia on the main island of Grande Terre. Araucaria biramulata is a medium-large tree reaching 30 meters in height. As with several other endemic New Caledonian araucaria species, it is threatened by habitat loss with a fragmented wild population of less than 10,000 mature trees, and ongoing decline in remaining populations, with the main threats being forest fires and mining activities. Piggyback araucaria gets its common name from the unusual growth habit of mature trees, where they often develop a second growth tip halfway up the trunk, giving the appearance of a smaller tree "piggybacking" on the side of a larger one.

<i>Araucaria columnaris</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria columnaris, the coral reef araucaria, Cook pine, New Caledonia pine, Cook araucaria, or columnar araucaria, is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae.

<i>Araucaria humboldtensis</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria humboldtensis, or Humboldt's araucaria, is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only in New Caledonia. It is threatened by habitat loss, as even though the remaining wild populations are located within protected park areas, an increased frequency of forest fires in recent years has led to continued degradation of habitat and increased dieback of mature trees.

<i>Araucaria luxurians</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria luxurians is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is known by the common names Sapin de Noël and Coast araucaria. It is endemic to New Caledonia, where it grows in several small subpopulations. It grows in ultramafic soils in humid forests and on cliffs and slopes. It is threatened by habitat loss and none of the subpopulations are in protected areas.

<i>Araucaria muelleri</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria muelleri is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is a medium size tree, 10–25 meters in height, with larger leaves than most other New Caledonian Araucarias. It is found only in New Caledonia, in several sites in the far south of Grande Terre, the main island.

<i>Araucaria rulei</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria rulei is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is endemic to New Caledonia, where it is an endangered species. Its populations are fragmented and are generally made up of scattered individuals. It is restricted to serpentine soils, often with high nickel levels, and its natural range is almost completely restricted to areas rich in nickel. Nickel mining in New Caledonia has consequently been a major cause of its decline.

Araucaria schmidii is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is a medium to large tree growing up to 30 meters tall. It is found only in a small area on New Caledonia, with only one contiguous population in an area covering less than one square kilometer on the summit and highest slopes of Mont Panié in the north-east of the main island, Grande Terre, though a few scattered individuals may still be found on surrounding peaks. It is threatened by habitat loss. While the single remaining population is in a protected national park in a remote area, this area is still regularly visited by tourists, and IUCN has expressed concern that the entire population is at risk of being wiped out by a chance event such as the introduction of a fungal disease.

<i>Araucaria subulata</i> Species of conifer

Araucaria subulata is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only in New Caledonia, with scattered populations present across the central and southern mountain regions of the main island Grande Terre, especially on Mont Dzumac and Mont des Sources. It is one of the tallest of New Caledonia's endemic araucaria species, reaching up to 50 meters in height. Young trees, like the one in the picture, show simaler growth habits to the Norfolk Island Pine. It is threatened by habitat loss as with all of New Caledonia's araucaria trees, but populations of Araucaria subulata are currently considered to be stable and it was not found to be threatened or endangered when most recently assessed.

References

  1. Thomas, P. (2010). "Agathis ovata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2010: e.T30980A9586101. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T30980A9586101.en . Retrieved 16 November 2021.