''Araucaria montana'', the mountain araucaria, is a species of

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

in the family Araucariaceae. It is found only in

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

. ''Araucaria montana'' is the most widely distributed of New Caledonia's native ''Araucaria'' species, and is found throughout the main island of

Grande Terre Grande means "large" or "great" in many of the Romance languages. It may also refer to: Places *Grande, Germany, a municipality in Germany *Grande Communications, a telecommunications firm based in Texas *Grande-Rivière (disambiguation) *Arroio ...

, as well as a small population on Île d'Art. However it is still considered vulnerable due to

fragmentation Fragmentation or fragmented may refer to: Computers * Fragmentation (computing), a phenomenon of computer storage * File system fragmentation, the tendency of a file system to lay out the contents of files non-continuously * Fragmented distributi ...

of populations and

degradation of habitat Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

, due mainly to mining activities. Height of mature trees can vary from 10 to 40 meters. A population genetic study suggested that the less common '' A. laubenfelsii'' may not be distinct from ''A. montana''. The Latin

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''montana'' refers to mountains or coming from mountains.Archibald William Smith Gardenology

References

montana Endemic flora of New Caledonia Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Jean Antoine Arthur Gris Taxa named by Adolphe-Théodore Brongniart {{conifer-stub