Didymocheton gaudichaudianus

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Didymocheton gaudichaudianus
Dysoxylumgaudichaudianum.jpg
Ivory mahogany near Lacey Creek, Queensland
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Sapindales
Family: Meliaceae
Genus: Didymocheton
Species:
D. gaudichaudianus
Binomial name
Didymocheton gaudichaudianus
Synonyms [2]
List
    • Alliaria ammooroides(Miq.) Kuntze (1891)
    • Alliaria gaudichaudiana(A.Juss.) Kuntze (1891)
    • Alliaria otophora(Miq.) Kuntze (1891)
    • Alliaria spanoghei(Miq.) Kuntze (1891)
    • Didymocheton albiflorus(C.DC.) Harms (1940)
    • Didymocheton amooroides(Miq.) Harms (1940)
    • Didymocheton betchei(C.DC.) Harms (1940)
    • Didymocheton decandrus(Blanco) Harms (1940)
    • Didymocheton maota(Reinecke) Harms (1940)
    • Didymocheton spanoghei(Miq.) Harms (1940)
    • Dysoxylum albiflorum C.DC. (1912)
    • Dysoxylum amooroidesMiq. (1868)
    • Dysoxylum amooroides var. otophorum(Miq.) Koord. & Valeton (1896)
    • Dysoxylum amooroides var. pubescensHochr. (1904)
    • Dysoxylum bakerarumGuillaumin (1938)
    • Dysoxylum betcheiC.DC. (1903)
    • Dysoxylum blancoiVidal (1880)
    • Dysoxylum decandrum(Blanco) Merr. (1918)
    • Dysoxylum gaudichaudianum(A.Juss.) Miq. (1868)
    • Dysoxylum intermediumMerr. & L.M.Perry (1948)
    • Dysoxylum macrophyllumTeijsm. & Binn. (1866), nom. nud.
    • Dysoxylum maotaReinecke (1898)
    • Dysoxylum otophorumMiq. (1868)
    • Dysoxylum pubescensTeijsm. & Binn. (1866), nom. nud.
    • Dysoxylum quaifeiC.DC. (1906)
    • Dysoxylum rufum var. glabrescensBenth. (1863)
    • Dysoxylum salutareFern.-Vill. (1880), nom. illeg.
    • Dysoxylum spanogheiMiq. (1868)
    • Dysoxylum vestitumWarb. (1891)
    • Turraea decandraBlanco (1837)
    • Turraea virensBlanco (1845), sensu auct.

Didymocheton gaudichaudianus, commonly known as ivory mahogany, is a species of rainforest tree in the family Meliaceae, native to Malesia, Papuasia, Queensland, and some southwest Pacific islands.

Contents

Description

The ivory mahogany is a large tree growing up to 36 m (118 ft) in height with a straight trunk up to 80 cm (31 in) diameter. The bark is smooth and often has teaspoon-sized depressions in it. Buttress roots are a feature of this tree and may reach up to 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) high and 3.5 m (11 ft) wide. [3] [4]

The very large leaves are produced in whorls and clustered towards the ends of the branches. They are imparipinnate with up to 14 pairs of leaflets, and measure up to 125 cm (49 in) in length. [3] [4] This arrangement produces large spherical clusters of foliage (see gallery).

The leaflets are highly asymmetric at the base with one side of the leaf blade wider than the other. They measure up to 30 by 8 cm (11.8 by 3.1 in) [4]

The inflorescences are thyrses, about 70 cm (28 in) long, and produced in or close to the leaf axils. The flowers are a pale cream or green, 5-merous, with an unpleasant smell. The fruits are capsules about 3 cm (1.2 in) diameter which are covered in fine brown hairs. They have five segments and contain up to 10 seeds about 1 cm (0.39 in) long. [3] [4]

Phenology

Flowering in Australia occurs from September to January, with fruits ripening around October to February. [4] [5]

Taxonomy

This species was first described by Adrien-Henri de Jussieu in 1830. It has been known by many synonyms. [2]

The species epithet was given to honour French botanist Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré. The former genus name Dysoxylum comes from the Latin dys meaning "bad", and the Ancient Greek xylon meaning "wood", and refers to the unpleasant smell produced by some species. [6]

Distribution and habitat

Didymocheton gaudichaudianus is native to central and eastern Malesia (Christmas Island, Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands, Sulawesi, Maluku Islands, and the Philippines), Papuasia (New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and the Solomon Islands), Queensland, Australia from the Cape York Peninsula to the Mary River in south east Queensland, and some islands South-West Pacific (Vanuatu, the Samoan Islands, Tonga, and Wallis and Futuna). [2] It grows in lowland rainforest up to 300 metres elevation.

References

  1. ↑ IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group & Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). (2019). "Dysoxylum gaudichaudianum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019 e.T156217920A156217922. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T156217920A156217922.en . Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Didymocheton gaudichaudianus A.Juss". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2024. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 F.A.Zich; B.P.M.Hyland; T.Whiffen; R.A.Kerrigan (2020). "Dysoxylum gaudichaudianum". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants Edition 8 (RFK8). Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government . Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Mabberley, D.J. (2021). Sandgren, M.; Kodela, P.G. (eds.). "Dysoxylum gaudichaudianum". Flora of Australia . Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  5. ↑ "Didymocheton gaudichaudianus". iNaturalist. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  6. ↑ Cooper, Wendy; Cooper, William T. (June 2004). Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Clifton Hill, Victoria, Australia: Nokomis Editions. p. 288. ISBN   978-0-9581742-1-3.
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