Species profile—Sarcotoechia heterophylla
Classification
Plantae (plants) → Equisetopsida (land plants) → Sapindaceae → Sarcotoechia heterophylla
Sighting data
Species details
- Kingdom
- Plantae (plants)
- Class
- Equisetopsida (land plants)
- Family
- Sapindaceae
- Scientific name
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla S.T.Reynolds
- WildNet taxon ID
- 14270
- Superseded by
- Synima heterophylla (18/02/2021)
- Conservation significant
- No
- Confidential
- No
- Endemicity
- Exotic
- Pest status
- Nil
- Short Notes
- BRI 301162, plus spirit
- Description
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla is a small tree growing 6 to 12 m high. The plant is sparsely branched with the branchlets showing a tendency to be arching or drooping. The young branchlets, leaf-axes and peduncles have pale or rusty brown hairs. The leaves are 11.5 to 18 cm long, and divided into 4 to 6 leaflets. The petiole is 2 to 3.5 cm long, subterete, broad and hairy at the base. The rachis is also hairy, and 2.5 to 6.5 cm long. The leaflets are elliptic, obovate or ovate and measures 5.5 to 12 cm long by 2.5 to 4.2 cm wide. The leaflets edges are sparsely serrated. The midrib is ridged on both surfaces of the leaflets. There are 10 to 15 pairs of spreading lateral nerves, and domatia-like pockets sometimes present along the midrib. Petiolules are 1 to 4 mm long, slender, pulvinate, and hairy at the base. The inflorescences are axillary, slender, racemose, fragile, 1-5 to 3.5 cm long. The flowers are unisexual. Female flowers are not known. Male flowers are grouped into 1.5 to 3.5 cm long clusters that grows in the leaf axils. Each male flowers has a hairy peduncle, 3 mm long, a five-lobed calyx, five petals and eight stamens. The calyx tube is 1.5 to 2.5 mm long and the triangular lobes are 1.2 by 1 mm in size. The petals are ovate and 1.5 mm long by 1 mm wide. The filaments to 1.5 mm long. The fruits are yellow, obovoid to transversely ellipsoid-line and 1.2 cm long by 1.3 to 1.6 cm in diameter. Each fruit has one or two lobes, densely sericeous inside, tomentose outside. The fruit contains only one dull, oblong seed. The aril is rudimentary at the base or absent (Reynolds, 1985; Wang, 1999).
Sarcotoechia heterophylla is similar to S. serrata with respect to leaf margins, indumentum and aril but differs from it in having much larger leaflets with usually irregularly and shallowly serrulate margins. The aril is also inconspicuous or absent. Both S. serrata and S. heterophylla differ from all other species of Sarcotoechiain having serrate or serrulate leaflets, crispate indumentum, very small rudimentary aril and slightly larger seed. The fruits and seeds are unlike any other Sapindaceae in Australia (Reynolds, 1985). - Distribution
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla is restricted to 12 populations in central eastern Queensland, in the Eungella area. It has been recorded in Crediton State Forest, Cawley State Forest and Eungella National Park (Queensland Herbarium, 2011). A few populations are also found on surrounding properties, and it is also likely to occur in nearby forest reserves such as Eungella State Forest and Pelion State Forest (Wang, 1999).
- Distributional limits
- -20.9151048, 148.4847222
-21.2488142, 148.6427554 - Range derivation
- Range derived from extent of the taxon's verified records
- Habitat
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla usually occurs at an altitude of 200 to 900 m asl. It has been recorded in simple or mixed notophyll vine forests on ridges. It often grows on light loams derived from granite. However the species has also been recorded on basalt soils. Associated species include Schizomeria ovata, Acmena resa, Syzygium wesa, Argyrodendron actinophyllum, Cryptocarya angulata, Elaeocarpus foveolatus and Archontophoenix cunninghamii
(Wang, 1999; Queensland Herbarium, 2011) - Reproduction
- Flowering in Sarcotoechia heterophylla has been recorded in April. The fruiting period is from October to December (Wang, 1999; Queensland Herbarium, 2011)
- Threatening processes
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla has a very restricted distribution. However the plant is relatively abundant at sites where it occurs. Currently there are no threats or possible threatening processes to the species (Wang, 1999).
- Status notes
- Sarcotoechia heterophylla is listed as Near Threatened under the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992.
- Management documents
- Wang, J (1999). Sarcotoechia heterophylla Species Management Profile, Department of Natural Resources, Queensland.
- Management recommendations
- Management recommendations for the continued protection of Sarcotoechia heterophylla and its habitat state that a protective buffer (0.25 ha) which excludes clearing should be established with all S. heterophylla at least 25 m inside the protective buffer (Wang, 1999)
- Notes
- Occurs in the following Queensland pastoral district: South Kennedy (Bostock and Holland, 2010).
- References
- Bostock, P.D. and Holland, A.E. (eds) (2010). Census of the Queensland Flora 2010. Queensland Herbarium, Department of Environment and Resource Management, Brisbane.
Queensland Herbarium (2011). Specimen label information. Queensland Herbarium. Accessed 18/12/2011.
Reynolds, S.T. (1985). Notes on Sapindaceae, IV. Austrobaileya 2 (2): 182.
Wang, J. (1999). Sarcotoechia heterophylla Species Management Profile. Department of Natural Resources, Brisbane. - Profile author
- Lynise Wearne (27/06/2012)
Other resources
Data source
This profile data is sourced from the QLD Wildlife Data API using the Get species by ID function used under CC-By 4.0.
https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species/?op=getspeciesbyid&taxonid=14270.
This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.
