Corymbia calophylla

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Marri
Corymbia calophylla, near
Cataby
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Corymbia
Species:
C. calophylla
Binomial name
Corymbia calophylla
Synonyms[1]
synonyms

Corymbia calophylla, commonly known as marri, is a species of flowering plant in the family

endemic to the southwest of Western Australia
. It is a tree or mallee with rough bark on part or all of the trunk, lance-shaped adult leaves, branched clusters of cup-shaped or pear-shaped flower buds, each branch with three or seven buds, white to pink flowers, and relatively large oval to urn-shaped fruit, colloquially known as honky nuts. Marri wood has had many uses, both for Aboriginal people, and in the construction industry.

Description

red kino at fire damaged trunk
fruit

Corymbia calophylla is a large tree, or a mallee in poor soil, and that typically grows to a height of 40 metres (131 ft), but can reach over 60 metres (197 ft).[2] The largest known individual C. calophylla is 71 m (233 ft) tall, has a 10.8 m (35 ft) girth and a wood volume of 134 m3 (4,700 cu ft).[3] The trunk of the tree may become up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) wide, the branches becoming large, thick and rambling.[4][5] It has rough, tessellated, grey-brown to red-brown bark that extends over the length of the trunk and branches. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, thick and the same shade of glossy green on both sides, broadly lance-shaped to egg-shaped and tapered or rounded at the base. The leaf blade is 9 to 14 centimetres (4 to 6 in) long and 25 to 40 millimetres (0.98 to 1.57 in) wide with a narrowly flattened or channelled petiole 15 to 20 mm (0.59 to 0.79 in) long.[6] It blooms between December and May, producing white to pink flowers.[2] The flower buds are arranged on the ends of branchlets on a branched peduncle that is circular or angled in cross-section. Each branch of the peduncle has buds in groups of three or seven on pedicels 6–37 mm (0.24–1.46 in) long. Mature buds are club-shaped or pear-shaped, 6–14 mm (0.24–0.55 in) long and 6–10 mm (0.24–0.39 in) wide with a flattened operculum. The fruits or gumnuts form later and can remain on the tree for a year or more. They are oval to urn-shaped, 30–50 mm (1.2–2.0 in) long and 25–40 mm (0.98–1.57 in) wide on a pedicel 7–40 mm (0.28–1.57 in) long.[6]

The large nuts produced carry large seeds which are an important food source for native bird species such as cockatoos. The tree propagates readily from seeds.[7] It is distinctive among bloodwoods for its very large buds and fruit, colloquially known as honky (or honkey) nuts, in Western Australia.[5]

Taxonomy and naming

The name Eucalyptus calophylla was first published in 1831 by Robert Brown in Journal of the Royal Geographical Society of London, but without a description it was deemed to be a nomen nudum.[8] Brown used a specimen grown at Kew to include the species in the family as Myrtaceae. He did not give a reason for the specific epithet (calophylla),[9] however Ferdinand von Mueller noted in 1879 that Brown "bestowed the specific name on this tree seemingly for a double reason, because the foliage is more beautiful than that of many other Eucalypts, and also because the venation of the leaves reminds of that of the tropical genus Calophyllum in the plants-order of Guttiferae."[5][10]

The first formal description of E. calophylla was published in 1841 by

"Mrs. Molloy" and sent to "Capt. Jas. Mangles, R.N." who was later a seed merchant.[12]

Mueller placed the species with a series of "bloodwoods" in 1884, based on characteristics of the bark.[5] Joseph Maiden's 1920 book, A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus, supported this arrangement.[13]

In 1995 Ken Hill and Lawrie Johnson changed the name to Corymbia calophylla.[14][15][5] In 2009, Carlos Parra-O and colleagues published a combined analysis of nuclear rDNA (ETS + ITS) and morphological characters published to clarify relationships within the genus Corymbia. C. calophylla was found to form a natural group with two other Western Australian species C. ficifolia and C. haematoxylon. They classified the group as section Calophyllae within the subgenus Corymbia.[16][17]

It is related and somewhat similar to Corymbia ficifolia, a red flowered species endemic to the same region. C. calophylla differs in being larger (to about 50 metres (160 ft) high in the wild), having much larger buds and fruit, and flowers that are usually white—occasionally pink—instead of red.[10] However, in some areas hybridisation makes identification difficult.

Common names include marri and Port Gregory gum,[18] and a long-standing usage has been red gum due to the red sap effusions often found on trunks. Red gum was recorded as a name in use by the Swan River colonists in 1835. Other species of Corymbia (then Eucalyptus) were referred to as 'red gum', so to avoid ambiguity the Forestry Department of the Western Australian government nominated the extant name marri in the 1920s.[19] Corymbia calophylla is still commonly known as a 'eucalypt', despite the transfer to the new genus.[5] The Noongar peoples know the tree as gardan, kurrden, mahree, marri, nandap or ngora.[20][21] Second-hand reports of Indigenous names for "red gum" were reported by correspondents in The West Australian in 1929, the name kardun attributed to the Pinjarrah people and marri from the Blackwood region; marri boona was said to be a reference to the wood.[22]

Distribution

Jarrah and marri forest near the Blackwood River

Marri is widely distributed in the

Geraldton (28° S) to Cape Riche (34° S), and inland beyond Narrogin (32°56′S 117° E). It is found displaying its adaptability to the different environments on the Swan Coastal Plain and the Darling Scarp
. Where the soil type is appropriate it will dominate as the upper storey in woodland, to within a few kilometres from the coast.[23] The species will grow on comparatively poor soil, but good specimens are considered an indicator of the better agricultural soils. Found in a variety of terrains including Flats, hills, breakaways, wetlands, fringing salt marches and beside drainage lines it is able to grow in red-brown clay loams, orange-brown sandy clays, gravel and grey sandy soils over limestone, granite or laterite.[2]

Ecology

Marri is regarded as one of the six forest giants found in Western Australia; the other trees include; Eucalyptus gomphocephala (Tuart), Eucalyptus diversicolor (Karri), Eucalyptus jacksonii (Red Tingle), Eucalyptus marginata (Jarrah) and Eucalyptus patens (Yarri).[24][25]

Botanical illustration of leaf, flower and seeds in Mueller's Eucalyptographia

A common species, though its population has been subject to large fluctuations due to change in land use in its region. A dominant tree of several vegetation types when in favourable soils and climates, with rich and sometimes intimate associations to other species.

The fruit and seeds are consumed by avian species, and it is a staple in the diet of

long-billed black cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus baudinii) and red-capped parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius).[26] Both species prise marri seeds out of their woody capsule by manipulating it with the foot and lower mandible, and inserting the point of the upper mandible at openings in the seed-dispersing valve.[27] The marks left by the lower mandible on the marri's nut distinguish the species of parrots and cockatoos.[28][29]

Plant species associated with Corymbia calophylla in the mid-story include the tall shrub or tree

ecological community, once widespread and now restricted to less than 3% of its range. One of three described marri dominated assemblages, this one is distinguished by the drier soils of the community's range along the eastern edge of the Swan Coastal Plain.[34]

Old large trees became rare after extensive agricultural conversion of land during the twentieth century, but

Narrogin, was to splinter the trunks and roots with Gelignite.[5]

Conservation status

Corymbia calophylla is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions,[2] but was added to the IUCN Red List as "near threatened" species in 2019.[35]

Uses

Marri trees played a significant role in Noongar culture, the applications of its products were adapted and exported by the people occupying the Southwest of Australia.[5]

The

Diary of George Fletcher Moore recording its use in 1831. The colony began to export the product to England. Mueller gave a price at markets in London of twenty to twenty five pounds per ton in 1879.[10][5] The value of the product was recognised by a 1922 investigation of the state's forestry. A method was patented to improve the use as a tanning agent for commercial applications, increasing its solubility and removing colour. The composition of marri kino is about two thirds tannins, and is unusual in being harvestable without felling the tree.[5]

Marri wood is used to make a variety of objects like doarks (sticks for knocking the tops off

railway sleepers.[5]

The blossoms from the marri can be used as a source of sugary syrup, which can be sucked directly from the flower or can be dipped into water to make a sweet drink. The colonial botanist James Drummond noted the preparation of this drink, called numbit, in 1843.[5] These blossoms also attract ngoowak (bees) and honey can be found in the hollows of eucalyptus branches. These trees also attract birds which nest in the hollows, in which eggs can be found to eat.[17][37]

The large and distinctive fruit produced by the tree is featured in the literature of

Gumnut babies'. The Noongar poet Jack Davis celebrated the importance of marri in his poem 'The Red Gum and I'.[5]

Use in horticulture

The tree is able to be cultivated by sowing seeds directly at a site, or raised in pots to avoid damage to seedlings.

street tree in the suburbs of Southwest Australia.[42]

A tree at Kew Gardens, grown from seeds he had collected in 1802, were the specimens used by Robert Brown in his description of the species.[5] Mueller noted in Eucalyptographia (1879) that the tree could be grown in tropical climes, giving John Kirk's report of its successful introduction to Zanzibar, but that its sensitivity to frost had accounted for its failure in Melbourne, Australia and other regions.[10]

Gallery

  • The Corymbia Giant, the tallest and largest marri
    The Corymbia Giant, the tallest and largest marri
  • Mature tree with man at left, c. 1922
    Mature tree with man at left, c. 1922

References

  1. ^ a b "Corymbia calophylla". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  2. ^
    Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
    .
  3. ISBN 978-0-646-80613-6
    .
  4. ^ Powell 1990, p. 136.
  5. ^
    ISBN 0958556202
    .
  6. ^ "Corymbia calophylla". Australian Native Plants Society. November 2007. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  7. ^ "Corymbia cadophora". APNI. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  8. JSTOR 1797656
    .
  9. ^ a b c d e f Mueller, Ferdinand von (1879). "Eucalyptus calophylla". Eucalyptographia. A descriptive atlas of the eucalypts of Australia and the adjoining islands;. Melbourne, J. Ferres, Govt. Print.
  10. ^ "Eucalyptus calophylla". APNI. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  11. ^ Lindley, John (1841). "Miscellaneous Notices". Edwards's Botanical Register. 27: 72–73. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  12. ^ Maiden, Joseph (1920). A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus (Volume 5). Sydney: New South Wales Government Printer. pp. 73–81. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  13. doi:10.7751/telopea19953017
    .
  14. ^ "Corymbia brachycarpa". APNI. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  15. doi:10.1071/SB09028
    .
  16. ^ a b c "Plants and People in Mooro Country Nyungar Plant Use in Yellagonga Regional Park" (PDF). City of Joondalup. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  17. ISBN 0727012576
    .
  18. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.61019
    .
  19. ^ a b "Learn some of the Noongar language". ABC Education. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  20. ^ "Noongar names for plants". kippleonline.net. Archived from the original on 20 November 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  21. ^ "NATIVE NAME FOR REDGUM". Western Mail. Vol. XXXII, no. 1, 650. Western Australia. 10 August 1917. p. 5. Retrieved 21 July 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
  22. ^ Powell 1990, p. 217.
  23. ^ "Eucalyptus gomphocephala". Australian Seed. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  24. ^ "Eucalyptus gomphocephala". Plants For A Future. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  25. ISBN 9780670077960
    . citing 'marri' HANZAB
  26. ISBN 978-1740214179
    .
  27. ^ "Chewed Marri nut identification". Western Australian Museum. Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  28. ^ Fleming, R. (2011). "Identification of chewed Marri nuts eaten by cockatoos and parrots" (PDF). Western Australian Museum. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  29. ^ Powell 1990, p. 197.
  30. ^ Powell 1990, p. 96.
  31. ^ Powell 1990, p. 118.
  32. ^ Powell 1990, p. 112.
  33. ^ "Corymbia calophylla – Xanthorrhoea preissii woodlands and shrublands of the Swan Coastal Plain". Threatened species & ecological communities. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. 19 February 2007. Retrieved 31 May 2009.
  34. ^ "Marri - Corymbia calophylla". IUCN Red List. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  35. ^ Kessell, S (1921), The occurrence of gum veins and pockets in marri (Eucalyptus calophylla), The Dept, retrieved 23 November 2016
  36. ^ "Aboriginal Use of Native Plants". UniServe Science. 30 April 2012. Archived from the original on 17 October 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  37. ^ Powell 1990, p. 222.
  38. ^ "Corymbia calophylla pure seed". Nindethana Australian Seeds. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  39. ^ "Corymbia calophylla 'Marri Tree'". Ellenby Tree Farm. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  40. ^ Powell 1990, p. 219–220.
  41. ^ Powell 1990, p. 215.
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