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Black Cypress Pine (cones)
Callitris endlicheri
-28.8685, 151.983
Field Notes
Description:
Callitris endlicheri, commonly known as "black cypress pine", is a species of conifer in the Cupressaceae family, and is found only in Australia. Trees are typically killed by canopy fire and the species regenerates from seeds. Usually found on stony hills or ridges, from the plains to the coastal ranges in QLD, NSW, and VIC. In Girraween, the vast majority of specimens I found were high up on the massive granite outcrops. PS: There are 8 families of conifers, however, the species found in Girraween National Park all belong to the same family - Cupressaceae, the cypresses - Callitris endlicheri, Callitris monticola, and Callitris rhomboidea. These 3 are amongst the 14 cypress species native to Australia.
Habitat:
Spotted along the Racecourse Creek Track in Girraween National Park, southeast Queensland. Dry sclerophyll forest with sandy granite soils, rocky location with accumulated leaf litter, at the top of a large granite monolith known as Panorama Hill. Here's some park info - http://www.rymich.com/girraween/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girraween_National_Park
Notes:
What I found particularly unusual about this spotting was that all the trees that bore these cones appeared to be dead. They were all small trees, each devoid of any foliage whatsoever, and some of the cones had begun to rot, so that's an indication that these trees have been dead for some time. Fires have burnt across this outcrop, but not recently, so perhaps they fell victim to years of severe drought instead?
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