''Toronia'' is a genus of tree in the family

Proteaceae The Proteaceae form a family (biology), family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genus, genera with about 1,660 known species. Australia and South Africa have the greatest concentr ...

that contains a single species, ''Toronia toru'', which 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 ...

to New Zealand. The genus is closely related to the large genus ''

Persoonia ''Persoonia'', commonly known as geebungs or snottygobbles, is a genus of about one hundred species of flowering plants in the family Proteaceae. Plants in the genus ''Persoonia'' are shrubs or small trees usually with smooth bark, simple lea ...

'', and in fact this species was long regarded as one until placed in its own new genus by Lawrie Johnson and Barbara G. Briggs in their 1975 monograph " On the Proteaceae: the evolution and classification of a southern family". However, phylogenetic studies indicate that ''Toronia'' is nested in the larger genus ''

'', where it was once included. ''Toronia toru'' is an

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

found in the northern half of the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

and is one of only two members of the

protea ''Protea'' () is a genus of South African flowering plants, also called sugarbushes (Afrikaans: ''suikerbos''). It is the type genus of the Proteaceae family. About 92% of the species occur only in the Cape Floristic Region, a narrow belt of mo ...

family occurring in New Zealand. ''Toronia toru'' grows to 7 – 11 metres and has long slender green leaves, small yellow flowers, and red to dark purple-blue fleshy fruits.

References

External links

* Persoonioideae Trees of New Zealand Flora of the North Island Plants described in 1975 Monotypic Proteaceae genera Endemic flora of New Zealand Taxa named by Barbara G. Briggs Taxa named by Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson {{Proteaceae-stub