Terminalia arostrata

Terminalia arostrata, commonly known as crocodile tree or nutwood,[1] is a tree of the family Combretaceae native to northern parts of Australia.[2]

Crocodile tree
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Combretaceae
Genus: Terminalia
Species:
T. arostrata
Binomial name
Terminalia arostrata
Ewart & O.B.Davies

The tree typically grows to a height of 4.5 to 12 metres (15 to 39 ft) in height and deciduous to semi-deciduous. It blooms between July and November producing white, orange and red flowers.[2] The tree has a rounded crown and pendulous branches and produces edible seeds.[3] The leaves are 3 to 13 centimetres (1.2 to 5.1 in) long and 10 to 45 centimetres (3.94 to 17.72 in) wide and has beaked fruit that persists year round.[1]

The species was first described by botanists Alfred James Ewart and O.B.Davies in 1917 in The Flora of the Northern Territory.[4]

It is found on flat to slightly undulating places in swampy areas and on basaltic plains in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland growing in alluvium and heavy soils.[3]

References

  1. "Terminalia arostrata Ewart & O.B.Davies". NT Flora. Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  2. "Terminalia arostrata". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
  3. "Terminalia arostrata". Useful Tropical Plants. 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  4. "Terminalia arostrata Ewart & O.B.Davies (misapplied to Terminalia savannicola)". Atlas of Living Australia. Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
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