''Sarcopteryx stipata'', known as the steelwood, is a rainforest 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 ...

occurring from the Bulga Plateau and Comboyne Plateau north west of

Taree, New South Wales Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...

as far north as

Fraser Island K'gari ( , ), also known by its former name Fraser Island, is a World Heritage-listed sand island along the south-eastern coast in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia. The island lies approximately north of the state capi ...

off the coast of south eastern

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 ...

. It grows in

sub tropical Sub or SUB may refer to: Places * Juanda International Airport, Surabaya, Indonesia, IATA code SUB People * Bottom (BDSM), or "sub" for "submissive" * Substitute teacher Christianity * Sub tuum praesidium, an ancient hymn and prayer dedicated t ...

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 ...

but sometimes occurs in warm temperate rainforests on poorer soils. It is a member of the soap berry family. The generic name ''Sarcopteryx'' translates to "fleshy wing", as the fruit can be wing shaped. ''Stipata'' means "surrounded". The common name ''steelwood'' refers to the very tough, hard and heavy timber.

Description

Usually seen as a small tree up to 10 metres in height, although a 40 metre tall tree with a trunk diameter of was recorded at Griers Scrub in

Nightcap National Park The Nightcap National Park is a national park situated within the Nightcap Range in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. The park was created in April 1983 and is situated north of . The park was established following cam ...

. The base of larger trees is somewhat flanged. Bark is hard and grey in colour, and often marked with irregularities such as wrinkles, horizontal bands and bumps. Small branches are thick, longitudinally ridged, and with soft brown hairs. Brown hairs occur on many parts of the plant.

Leaves

Compound leaves are long, with six leaflets, occasionally three to nine leaflets. Leaflets are long and wide, broad lanceolate in shape, narrowed at the base, and with a long fine leaf tip. The left and right halves of the leaflets are unequal in size. They are shiny green above, duller below with some brown hairs. The compound leaf stalk is brown and hairy, and swollen where it joins the branchlet. Leaflet stalks are between long, leaf veins are raised on both sides. Some lateral veins become wider and thicker where meeting the main mid rib of the leaf.

Flowers, fruit and germination

White or cream flowers appear from August to October on

panicle In botany, a panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a p ...

s, either at the end of the branchlets or from the

axil A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, fl ...

s of the leaves. Petals are long. The fruit is a red or pink capsule in diameter. It has three or four angles, with three cells, each containing one brown shiny cylindrical seed, in diameter. A yellow

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 ...

completely covers the seed. The fruit matures in November and December and is eaten by the

green catbird The green catbird (''Ailuroedus crassirostris'') is a species of bowerbird found in subtropical forests along the east coast of Australia, from southeastern Queensland to southern New South Wales. It is named after its distinctive call which soun ...

and

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 ...

. Germination from fresh seed is slow but reliable - removal of the yellow aril from the seed is advised. After four months practically all seeds should germinate.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q7423621 Sapindaceae Sapindales of Australia Trees of Australia Flora of Queensland Flora of New South Wales Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller