Stockwellia

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Stockwellia
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: Stockwellia
D.J.Carr , S.G.M.Carr & B.Hyland , et al. [2] [3]
Species:
S. quadrifida
Binomial name
Stockwellia quadrifida
D.J.Carr, S.G.M.Carr & B.Hyland [2] [3]
Synonyms [4] [5]
  • Myrtaceae Gen. nov. sp. (Boonjie BH 6589)

Stockwellia is a monotypic genus in the flowering plant family Myrtaceae. [2] The sole species in the genus, Stockwellia quadrifida (commonly known as Vic Stockwell's puzzle), is endemic to Queensland. [2] [4]

Contents

Description

Stockwellia quadrifida is a very large rainforest emergent, growing up to 40 m (130 ft) tall and 2 m (6 ft 7 in) DBH. [2] It has straight boles with reddish-brown flaky bark and buttress roots up to 6 m (20 ft) high. [2] [6] [7] [8]

The leaves are opposite to sub-opposite, glabrous, elliptic and leathery, measuring up to 12 cm (4.7 in) long by 4 cm (1.6 in) wide and turning red before falling. [2] [4]

Inflorescences are axillary, produced in groups of three sessile flowers on a peduncle measuring 10 to 25 mm (0.4 to 1.0 in) in length. [2] The fruits are a fused woody capsule containing oval-shaped seeds measuring up to 11 by 6.5 mm (0.4 by 0.3 in). [2]

Discovery

This species first became known to botanical science in 1971, when Atherton resident Keith Gould began experimenting with aerial photography as a means of forestry interpretation. Some of his photos appeared to show a large group of emergent trees in a small patch of rainforest near Topaz, and he referred them to Victor (Vic) Stockwell who was Queensland Forestry's ranger responsible for managing timber harvesting in that area. [6] [7] Despite Stockwell's vast experience in forestry he was unable to identify the trees from the photos, and so the two men ventured on foot into the forest to find them. When they encountered the trees, Stockwell realised that this was a species unknown both to himself and to botany in general. [6] [7] [9]

Stockwell was surprised to discover a tree (especially a tree so massive, and growing close to forestry roads) of which he was unaware. It quickly aroused interest in botanical circles and became known colloquially as "Vic Stockwell's Puzzle", and was even mentioned in a scientific paper as Stockwellia long before a formal description and name was published. [2] [6] [7]

Distribution and habitat

This species is endemic to a very small part of the luxuriant Wet Tropics rainforests of north-eastern Queensland, specifically an area on the western slopes of Mount Bartle Frere where it is found only in well-developed rainforest. It occurs within an altitude range of about 500–750 m (1,600–2,500 ft). [2] [4] [5]

Taxonomy

The genus Stockwellia and the species S. quadrifida were first formally described in 2002, some thirty years after its discovery. The Australian botanists Denis John Carr, Maisie Carr and Bernard Hyland published their collaboration in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , based on material collected by Hyland. [2]

Phylogeny

Genetic studies have shown that Stockwellia belongs in the "Eucalyptopsis alliance" (along with the genera Eucalyptopsis and Allosyncarpa) and that Allosyncarpa is basal to this group while the other two are sister taxa. [2] The closest relatives, therefore, are Eucalyptopsis alauda and Eucalyptopsis papuana (both from New Guinea and the only two species in the genus), and Allosyncarpia ternata (another monotypic genus) from the Northern Territory. [2] [10]

Etymology

The genus name is in honour of Vic Stockwell, being the first to identify the plant as an unknown species. The species epithet quadrifida is derived from the Latin quattuor (four), and -fidus (divided), referring to the four segments of the hypanthium. [2]

Conservation status

This species is listed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science as vulnerable. [1] As of 2 September 2021, it has not been assessed by the IUCN.

In the 2002 paper that formally describes S. quadrifida, the authors stated that despite its restricted range the only threat to the species is predation of the seeds by Sulphur-crested cockatoos (Cacatua galerita). [2] However a new threat has recently appeared that may be of concern. The Australian botanist Andrew Thornhill wrote in an informal (i.e. not peer reviewed) article in The Conversation that he and fellow botanist Stuart Worboys recently [lower-alpha 1] visited these trees, at which time Sworboys observed evidence of the fungus myrtle rust on the leaves. Thornhill wrote:

The Australian Myrtaceae have had no time to adapt to myrtle rust. What is happening now could cause the extinction of some extremely unique Australian plants – including Stockwellia.

suggesting that the status of this newly discovered species may change in the future. [7]

Ecology

The seeds are eaten by sulphur-crested cockatoos. [2] [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</i> Genus of trees

Corymbia, commonly known as bloodwoods, 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wet Tropics of Queensland</span> Natural world heritage site in Queensland, Australia

The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km2 of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range. The Wet Tropics of Queensland meets all four of the criteria for natural heritage for selection as a World Heritage Site. World Heritage status was declared in 1988, and on 21 May 2007 the Wet Tropics were added to the Australian National Heritage List.

<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.

Allosyncarpia ternata, commonly known as an-binik, is a species of rainforest trees constituting part of the botanical family Myrtaceae and included in the eucalypts group. The only species in its genus, it was described in 1981 by Stanley Blake of the Queensland Herbarium. They grow naturally into large, spreading, shady trees, and are endemic to the Northern Territory of Australia. They grow in sandstone gorges along creeks emerging from the Arnhem Land plateau.

<i>Lophostemon confertus</i> Species of tree in the family Myrtaceae

Lophostemon confertus, is an evergreen tree native to Australia, though it is cultivated in the United States and elsewhere. Common names include brush box, Queensland box, Brisbane box, pink box, box scrub, and vinegartree. Its natural range in Australia is north-east New South Wales and coastal Queensland but it is commonly used as a street tree in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and other cities in eastern Australia.

Eucalyptopsis is a genus of describing two species of trees, constituting part of the plant family Myrtaceae and included in the eucalypts group. They have botanical records of growing naturally in New Guinea and the Moluccas, within the Malesia region. Plant geneticists have found their closest evolutionary relatives in the monotypic genera and species Stockwellia quadrifida and Allosyncarpia ternata.

Bernard Hyland, known as Bernie Hyland, is an Australian botanist.

Hollandaea is a small genus of plants in the family Proteaceae containing four species of Australian rainforest trees. All four species are endemic to restricted areas of the Wet Tropics of northeast Queensland.

Sphalmium is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the protea family. The only species, Sphalmium racemosum, is a large forest tree. Common names include satin silky oak, mystery oak, Mt Lewis oak, poorman's fishtail oak and buff silky oak.

<i>Carnarvonia araliifolia</i> Species of tree

Carnarvonia is a flowering plant genus of a single species, commonly named red oak or red silky oak and constituting part of the plant family Proteaceae. The single species named Carnarvonia araliifolia grows to large trees of 30 m (100 ft) or more. They grow naturally only (endemic) to the Wet Tropics rainforests region of north-eastern Queensland, Australia. The species has two described varieties, Carnarvonia araliifolia var. araliifolia and Carnarvonia araliifolia var. montana, and the common names are used for both.

<i>Lasjia</i> Genus of trees of the family Proteaceae

Lasjia is a genus of five species of trees of the family Proteaceae. Three species grow naturally in northeastern Queensland, Australia and two species in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Descriptively they are the tropical or northern macadamia trees group. Lasjia species characteristically branched compound inflorescences differentiate them from the Macadamia species, of Australia, which have characteristically unbranched compound inflorescences and only grow naturally about 1,000 km (620 mi) further to the south, in southern and central eastern Queensland and in northeastern New South Wales.

<i>Eucryphia wilkiei</i> Species of tree

Eucryphia wilkiei is a species of rainforest shrubs endemic to restricted areas of cloud forests on mountain tops in the Wet Tropics region of northeastern Queensland, Australia. As of November 2013, botanists classify Eucryphia in the family Cunoniaceae.

<i>Lithomyrtus obtusa</i> Species of flowering plant

Lithomyrtus obtusa, commonly known as beach myrtella, is a flowering plant species in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. It occurs in coastal areas in New Guinea and Queensland, Australia.

Lindsayomyrtus is a monotypic genus in the family Myrtaceae, containling the single species Lindsayomyrtus racemoides, commonly known as Daintree penda. These large trees grow naturally in the rainforests of the Wet Tropics of Queensland in Australia, the Moluccas, New Guinea and New Britain.

<i>Syzygium alliiligneum</i> Species of tree

Syzygium alliiligneum is a species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. Common names include Mission Beach satinash, onionwood, puddenwood, bark in the wood, roly poly, and watergum.

Corymbia hylandii, commonly known as Hyland's bloodwood, is a species of small tree that is endemic to part of the Cape York Peninsula. It has rough, tessellated bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, creamy white flowers and urn-shaped fruit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eucalypteae</span> Tribe of flowering plants

Eucalypteae is a large tribe of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae; members of this tribe are known as eucalypts. In Australia the genera Angophora, Corymbia, and Eucalyptus are commonly known as gum trees, for the sticky substance that exudes from the trunk of some species. As of 2020, the tribe comprised around 860 species, all native to Southeast Asia and Oceania, with a main diversity center in Australia.

Syzygium forte, commonly known as white apple, flaky-barked satinash or brown satinash, is a tree of the family Myrtaceae native to Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland and New Guinea.

Syzygium apodophyllum is a tree in the Myrtaceae family endemic to north Queensland. The fruit is edible. It is a host for the exotic plant-pathogen fungus Austropuccinia psidii, which is causing a lot of damage to vegetation communities and economic plants.

References

  1. 1 2 "Species profile—Stockwellia quadrifida". Queensland Department of Environment and Science. Queensland Government. 20 October 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Carr, Denis J.; Carr, Stella G. M.; Hyland, Bernie P. M.; Wilson, Peter G.; Ladiges, Pauline Y. (2002). "Stockwellia quadrifida (Myrtaceae), a new Australian genus and species in the eucalypt group". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 139 (4): 415–421. doi: 10.1046/j.1095-8339.2002.00062.x .
  3. 1 2 "Stockwellia quadrifida". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI). Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government . Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 F.A. Zich; B.P.M Hyland; T. Whiffen; R.A. Kerrigan (2020). "Stockwellia quadrifida". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants, Edition 8. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 Cooper, Wendy; Cooper, William T. (June 2004). Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Clifton Hill, Victoria, Australia: Nokomis Editions. p. 355. ISBN   9780958174213 . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Elick, Rebel; Wilson, Peter (December 2002). "The discovery of Stockwellia (Myrtaceae)" (PDF). Australasian Systematic Botany Society Newsletter. 113 (December): 15–16. ISSN   1034-1218 . Retrieved 3 December 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Thornill, Andrew (2019). "Vic Stockwell's Puzzle is an unlikely survivor from a different epoch". The Conversation . The Conversation Media Group Ltd. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  8. "Specimen Details". Herbweb. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  9. Breeden, Stanley (1992). Visions of a Rainforest: A year in Australia's tropical rainforest. Illustrated by William T. Cooper. Foreword by Sir David Attenborough. (1st ed.). East Roseville: Simon & Schuster Australia. pp. 170–173. ISBN   978-0-7318-0058-2 . Retrieved 3 December 2013.
  10. Udovicic, Frank; Ladiges, Pauline Y. (2000). "Informativeness of nuclear and chloroplast DNA regions and the phylogeny of the eucalypts and related genera". Kew Bulletin. 55 (3): 633–645. doi:10.2307/4118780. JSTOR   4118780.

Notes

  1. Thornhill wrote: "More than a decade after the species was officially named...", i.e. later than 2012