''Archontophoenix myolensis'', the Myola palm, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the family

Arecaceae The Arecaceae () is a family (biology), family of perennial plant, perennial, flowering plants in the Monocotyledon, monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbing palm, climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly k ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

. It occurs in the Myola area and the Black Mountain in the Kuranda range in the

Atherton Tablelands The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau, which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. It has very deep, rich basaltic soils and the main industry is agriculture. The principal river flowing across the plateau is the ...

. The total population is seriously threatened by habitat clearance and is estimated to contain fewer than 100 mature trees and remains unprotected. Regeneration is good.

Distribution

Restricted to an altitudinal range of 350 to 400 m, the species occurs in riverine

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

metamorphic rock Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock ( protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, caus ...

s on the Barron River near

Kuranda, Queensland Kuranda is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality on the Atherton Tableland in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. It is from Cairns, Queensland, Cairns, via the Kuranda Range road. It is surrounded by tropical ...

and in particular near the village of Myola. Invasive weeds have prevented the expansion of the remaining rainforest habitat. Seedlings are washed away by floods.

References

myolensis Palms of Australia Vulnerable flora of Australia Nature Conservation Act endangered biota Vulnerable biota of Queensland Endangered flora of Australia Flora of Queensland Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endemic flora of Queensland Taxa named by John Leslie Dowe Tablelands Region {{Australia-plant-stub