synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...
''Rapanea variabilis'', known as the muttonwood or variable muttonwood is a tree of eastern
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 ...
. The range of natural distribution is from near Milton (35° S) in southern
New South Wales
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
to the
McIlwraith Range
The McIlwraith Range is a rugged, dissected granite plateau on Cape York Peninsula of Far North Queensland, Australia. Part of the Great Dividing Range, the McIlwraith Range covers about and lies about east of the town of Coen, and north o ...
in far north
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 ...
(13° S).
The habitat of the muttonwood is at the edges of rainforests of various types; including tropical, sub-tropical, warm temperate and
littoral
The littoral zone, also called litoral or nearshore, is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely i ...
rainforest.
Description
A small tree to around 15 metres tall and up to 50 cm in stem diameter. Noticeable for the dense, dark foliage and attractive blue fruit.
The trunk is straight and mostly cylindrical. The base of the tree is not buttressed. Bark is grey or brown, somewhat corky and rough with various irregularities; such as horizontal lines and vertical cracks.
Leaves are practically
sessile
Sessility, or sessile, may refer to:
* Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about
* Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant
* Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...
, the leaf stalks less than 5 mm long. Leaves alternate, toothed on young plants, wavy edged and relatively stiff. Reverse lanceolate to oblong or egg shaped; 3 to 8 cm long, not usually with a tip at the point. Leaf veins are raised and noticeable on both surfaces.
Cream flowers form in clusters along the ends of branches. 2 mm long flowers on 4 mm long flower stalks, the flowering period is mostly around July to August. The blue or violet coloured fruit mature between November and December; being a 4 to 6 mm diameter
drupe
In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is a type of fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pip'' (UK), ''pit'' (US), ''stone'', or ''pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed ...
.
The fruit is eaten by
Lewin's honeyeater
Lewin's honeyeater (''Meliphaga lewinii'') is a bird that inhabits the ranges along the east coast of Australia. It has a semicircular ear-patch, pale yellow in colour.
The name of this bird commemorates the Australian artist John Lewin.
Another ...
and the
rose crowned fruit dove
The rose-crowned fruit dove (''Ptilinopus regina''), also known as pink-capped fruit dove or Swainson's fruit dove, is a medium-sized fruit dove that is found in parts of southern Indonesia, northern Australia and eastern Australia.
Taxonomy
Th ...
. Germination from fresh seed occurs without difficulty. Removal of the fleshy
aril
An aril (), also called arillus, is a specialized outgrowth from a seed that partly or completely covers the seed. An arillode, or false aril, is sometimes distinguished: whereas an aril grows from the attachment point of the seed to the ova ...