Corymbia

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Corymbia
Corymbia ficifolia Flowers.jpg
Corymbia ficifolia near Austins Ferry
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Subfamily: Myrtoideae
Tribe: Eucalypteae
Genus: Corymbia
K.D.Hill & L.A.S.Johnson [1]
Type species
Corymbia gummifera
(Gaertn.) K.D. Hill & L.A.S. Johnson [2]
Diversity
about 113 species
Fruit of Corymbia intermedia Corymbia intermedia capsules.jpg
Fruit of Corymbia intermedia

Corymbia, commonly known as bloodwoods, [3] is a genus of about one hundred species of tree that, along with Eucalyptus , Angophora and several smaller groups, are referred to as eucalypts. Until 1990, corymbias were included in the genus Eucalyptus and there is still considerable disagreement among botanists as to whether separating them is valid. As of January 2020, Corymbia is an accepted name at the Australian Plant Census.

Contents

Description

Eucalypts in the genus Corymbia are trees, sometimes mallee-like, that either have rough, fibrous or flaky bark, or smooth bark that is shed in small flakes or short strips. Young plants and coppice regrowth have leaves that differ from adult leaves. The adult leaves are arranged alternately (strictly disjunct opposite, but appearing alternate), with oil glands. The flower buds are arranged in groups on a branching peduncle, each branch usually with seven buds, but with the pedicels of differing lengths, so that the inflorescence is flat-topped or convex. The anthers are joined to the filament at their mid-point and open by parallel slits. As in Eucalyptus, the five sepals are fused to form an outer calyptra (or operculum) and the five petals an inner calyptra, the two calyptra being shed separately or together as the flower opens. Also as in Eucalyptus the fruit is usually a woody capsule, but in this case the disc is always depressed and the valves are always enclosed. [3] [4] [5] [6]

Taxonomy and naming

The genus Corymbia was first formally described in 1995 by Ken Hill and Lawrie Johnson in the journal Telopea . The type species is C. gummifera . [2] [3] The genus name, Corymbia is from the Latin word corymbus, meaning "a corymb". [7]

The bloodwoods had been recognised as a distinct group within the large and diverse genus Eucalyptus since 1867. Molecular research in the 1990s, however, showed that they, along with the rest of the section Corymbia, are more closely related to Angophora than to Eucalyptus, and are now regarded as a separate genus by the Australian Plant Census. [1] All three genera, Angophora, Corymbia and Eucalyptus, are closely related, and are generally referred to as "eucalypts". [8] [9]

Botanists Ken Hill and Lawrie Johnson were the first to define the genus Corymbia in 1995, identifying the bloodwoods, ghost gums and spotted gums as a group distinct from Eucalyptus. [3]

Since 1995, there have been ongoing investigations into the relationships between the genera. Genetic analysis of ETS and ITS sequences of DNA in 2006 by Carlos Parra-O and colleagues of 67 taxa (47 of which were within Corymbia) yielded Corymbia and Angophora as each other's closest relatives, with the genus Eucalyptus as an earlier offshoot. The small genera Eucalyptopsis , Stockwellia and Allosyncarpia formed a clade which arose earlier still. [10] In 2009, Parra-O and colleagues added more taxa and published a combined analysis of nuclear rDNA (ETS + ITS) and morphological characters published to clarify relationships within the genus. This confirmed two main clades, which they defined as the subgenera Corymbia and Blakella. [8] [11]

Species list

Distribution

Species of Corymbia occur in all mainland states of Australia and in the Northern Territory. There are about 100 species, all endemic to Australia except for four species that also occur in New Guinea, and one that is endemic to that country. [1] [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eucalypt</span> Type of plant

Eucalypt is a descriptive name for woody plants with capsule fruiting bodies belonging to seven closely related genera found across Australasia: Eucalyptus, Corymbia, Angophora, Stockwellia, Allosyncarpia, Eucalyptopsis and Arillastrum.

<i>Corymbia ficifolia</i> Species of plant

Corymbia ficifolia (syn. Eucalyptus ficifolia, commonly known as the red flowering gum, is a species of small tree that is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has rough, fibrous bark on the trunk and branches, egg-shaped to broadly lance-shape adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, bright red, pink or orange flowers and urn-shaped fruit. It has a restricted distribution in the wild but is one of the most commonly planted ornamental eucalypts.

<i>Angophora</i> Genus of flowering plants

Angophora is a genus of nine species of trees and shrubs in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Endemic to eastern Australia, they differ from other eucalypts in having juvenile and adult leaves arranged in opposite pairs, sepals reduced to projections on the edge of the floral cup, four or five overlapping, more or less round petals, and a papery or thin, woody, often strongly ribbed capsule. Species are found between the Atherton Tableland in Queensland and south through New South Wales to eastern Victoria, Australia.

<i>Corymbia calophylla</i> Tree found in Western Australia

Corymbia calophylla, commonly known as marri, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a tree or mallee with rough bark on part or all of the trunk, lance-shaped adult leaves, branched clusters of cup-shaped or pear-shaped flower buds, each branch with three or seven buds, white to pink flowers, and relatively large oval to urn-shaped fruit, colloquially known as honky nuts. Marri wood has had many uses, both for Aboriginal people, and in the construction industry.

<i>Corymbia intermedia</i> Species of plant

Corymbia intermedia, commonly known as the pink bloodwood, is a species of medium to tall tree that is endemic to north-eastern Australia. It has rough, tessellated bark on the trunk and branches, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and oval to barrel-shaped fruit.

<i>Corymbia aparrerinja</i> Species of plant

Corymbia aparrerinja, commonly known as ghost gum, is a species of tree that is endemic to Central Australia. It has smooth bark, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, white flowers and cup-shaped to cylindrical fruit.

<i>Corymbia opaca</i> Species of plant

Corymbia opaca, also known as the desert bloodwood, is a species of tree that is endemic to northern Australia. It has rough bark on part or all of the trunk, lance-shaped leaves, club-shaped flower buds and urn-shaped fruit. Several parts of this plant are used by Aboriginal Australians in traditional medicine.

<i>Corymbia eximia</i> Species of plant

Corymbia eximia, commonly known as the yellow bloodwood, is a bloodwood native to New South Wales. It occurs around the Sydney Basin often in high rainfall areas on shallow sandstone soils on plateaux or escarpments, in fire prone areas. Growing as a gnarled tree to 20 m (66 ft), it is recognisable by its distinctive yellow-brown tessellated bark. The greyish green leaves are thick and veiny, and lanceolate spear- or sickle-shaped. The cream flowerheads grow in panicles in groups of seven and appear in spring. Known for many years as Eucalyptus eximia, the yellow bloodwood was transferred into the new genus Corymbia in 1995 when it was erected by Ken Hill and Lawrie Johnson. It is still seen under the earlier name in some works.

<i>Corymbia henryi</i> Species of plant

Corymbia henryi, commonly known as the large-leaved spotted gum, is a species of small to medium-sized tree that is endemic to north-eastern Australia. It has smooth, mottled bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three, white or lemon yellow flowers and barrel-shaped to urn-shaped fruit.

Corymbia papuana, commonly known as ghost gum, is a species of evergreen tree native to New Guinea, some Torres Strait Islands and the northern part of the Cape York Peninsula in Australia. It has smooth whitish bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, creamy white flowers and barrel-shaped or urn-shaped fruit.

<i>Corymbia zygophylla</i> Species of plant

Corymbia zygophylla, commonly known as the Broome bloodwood, is a species of small tree or a mallee that is endemic to Western Australia. It has rough, tessellated to fibrous bark on the trunk and branches, a crown of juvenile heart-shaped to lance-shaped, stem-clasping leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, white flowers and urn-shaped to shortened spherical fruit.

<i>Corymbia aspera</i> Species of plant

Corymbia aspera, commonly known as the rough-leaved ghost gum, rough leaf range gum, desert bloodwood, Brittle Range gum in Western Australia, or snappy gum in the Northern Territory is a species of tree that is endemic to northern Australia. It has smooth white bark, sometimes with a short stocking of rough bark near the base, a crown of sessile juvenile, heart-shaped or egg-shaped leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and cup-shaped, barrel-shaped or cylindrical fruit.

<i>Corymbia dichromophloia</i> Species of plant

Corymbia dichromophloia, commonly known as the small-fruited bloodwood, variably-barked bloodwood or gum-topped bloodwood, is a species of tree that is endemic to northern Australia. It has smooth white bark sometimes with flaky bark on the trunk, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds usually in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and urn-shaped fruit.

<i>Corymbia erythrophloia</i> Species of plant

Corymbia erythrophloia, commonly known as the red bloodwood, variable-barked bloodwood, red-barked bloodwood or gum-topped bloodwood, is a species of tree that is endemic to Queensland. It has rough bark on the trunk and branches, egg-shaped or lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and urn-shaped to spherical fruit.

<i>Corymbia ferriticola</i> Species of plant

Corymbia ferriticola, commonly known as the Pilbara ghost gum, is a species of tree or a mallee that is endemic to Western Australia. It has smooth bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and shortened spherical to cylindrical fruit.

<i>Corymbia gilbertensis</i> Species of plant

Corymbia gilbertensis, commonly known as the Gilbert River ghost gum or Gilbert River box, is a species of tree that is endemic to tropical far north Queensland. It has rough, tessellated bark on the lower part of the trunk, smooth bark above, a crown of juvenile, intermediate and adult leaves, flower buds mostly in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and cup-shaped to barrel-shaped fruit.

Corymbia bunites, commonly known as the Blackdown yellowjacket, is a species of tall tree that is endemic to Queensland. It has rough bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and barrel-shaped, urn-shaped or spherical fruit.

<i>Corymbia jacobsiana</i> Species of plant

Corymbia jacobsiana, commonly known as Jacob's bloodwood or the stringybark bloodwood, is a species of tree that is endemic to the Northern Territory. It has rough, stringy bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped to elliptical or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, creamy white flowers and urn-shaped fruit.

<i>Corymbia setosa</i> Species of plant

Corymbia setosa, commonly known as the rough leaved bloodwood or desert bloodwood, is a species of small tree that is endemic to north-eastern Australia. It has rough, tessellated brown bark on the trunk and branches, a crown of juvenile, heart-shaped leaves arranged in opposite pairs, flower buds in groups of three or seven, white flowers and urn-shaped to shortened spherical fruit.

Corymbia xanthope, commonly known as Glen Geddes bloodwood, is a species of tree that is endemic to a small area of Queensland. It has thick, rough bark on the trunk and branches with yellow bark visible underneath, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and urn-shaped fruit.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Corymbia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Corymbia". APNI. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Hill, Kenneth D.; Johnson, Lawrence A.S. (13 December 1995). "Systematic studies in the eucalypts. 7. A revision of the bloodwoods, genus Corymbia (Myrtaceae)". Telopea. 6 (2–3): 185–504. doi: 10.7751/telopea19953017 .
  4. ↑ "Corymbia". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  5. 1 2 Hill, Ken. "Corymbia". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  6. ↑ Messina, Andre; Stajsic, Val. "Corymbia". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  7. ↑ Francis Aubie Sharr (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and their Meanings. Kardinya, Western Australia: Four Gables Press. p. 71. ISBN   9780958034180.
  8. 1 2 Barrow, Jim. "Corymbia, Corymbia ... wherefore art thou Corymbia?". Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  9. ↑ "A brief history of Eucalyptus, Angophora and Corymbia". Euclid: Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  10. ↑ Parra-O., Carlos; Bayly, Michael; Udovicic, Frank; Ladiges, Pauline (2006). "ETS sequences support the monophyly of the eucalypt genus Corymbia (Myrtaceae)". Taxon. 55 (3): 653–63. doi:10.2307/25065641. JSTOR   25065641.
  11. ↑ Parra-O., C.; Bayly, M. J.; Drinnan, A.; Udovicic, F.; Ladiges, P. (2009). "Phylogeny, major clades and infrageneric classification of Corymbia(Myrtaceae), based on nuclear ribosomal DNA and morphology". Australian Systematic Botany. 22 (5): 384–399. doi:10.1071/SB09028.
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