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Species profile—Livistona concinna

Classification

Plantae (plants) → Equisetopsida (land plants) → Arecaceae (palm) → Livistona concinna

Species details

Kingdom
Plantae (plants)
Class
Equisetopsida (land plants)
Family
Arecaceae (palm)
Scientific name
Livistona concinna Dowe & Barfod
WildNet taxon ID
26863
Alternate name(s)
Cooktown fan palm
Kennedy River livistona
Cooktown livistona
Nature Conservation Act 1992 (NCA) status
Near threatened
Conservation significant
Yes
Confidential
Yes
Endemicity
Native
Pest status
Nil
Description
Livistona concinna is a palm, with a grey trunk to 30m tall. The trunk is 24-35cm in diameter at breast height, expanding to 100cm in diameter at the base. The internodes (bands on the trunk) are 2-20cm wide. There are 50-65 leaves forming a globose to hemispherical crown. The green, hairless petiole (leaf stalk) is 1.2-3.0m long and 5-11cm wide at the base, narrowing to about 2.8cm wide at the tip. The leaf stalk is triangular in cross-section and has solitary, symmetric, 3-5mm long black spines congested at the base end.
The leaves are hairless, glossy, non-waxy and mid-green in colour on the upper surface and lighter green on the underside. They are 1.5-1.6m long, about 2m wide and folded. Each leaf consists of 60-78 segments, which are free for about 60% of their length, with the tips hanging downwards. The segments mid-way along the stem are 2.6-4cm wide.
Functionally male inflorescences (flower clusters) are 120-180cm long with 8 or 9 partial inflorescences branched to the 4th order (3rd in distal parts). Functionally female inflorescences (flower clusters) are 160-250cm long with 8 or 9 partial infloresecnes branched to the 5th order (3rd in distal parts). White or cream flowers are solitary or in clusters of 2-4. Each flower is 1.6-2mm high and 2mm wide. The fruits are globular, shiny black and 9-12mm in diameter.
Livistona muelleri is the only other species in the area and can be distinguished by the smaller trunk (to 10m) and smaller leaf blade (80-90cm long). (Dowe & Barford 2001)
Habitat
Livistona concinna occurs in seasonally moist open forest, seasonally inundated Melaleuca swamp, along creek and river banks, and at mangrove margins in non-saline environments. It usually grows in alluvial soils. (Dowe & Barford 2001; Herbrecs 2008)
Behaviour
Most populations of Livistona concinna are regularly affected by fire. (Dowe & Barford 2001)
Reproduction
Livistona concinna is a functionally dioecious palm that flowers in the summer months, from December to March. Fruiting occurs between April and October. (Dowe & Barford 2001)
Notes
Contributors: Ailsa Holland, Mellisa Mayhew 18/06/2009
References
Dowe, J.L. & Barford, A.S. (2001). New species of Livistona. Austrobaileya 6(1): 165-174.
Herbrecs (2008). Livistona concinna, in BriMapper version 2.12. Queensland Herbarium. Accessed 08/10/2008.
Profile author
Ailsa Holland (18/06/2009)

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=26863.

This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.

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Licence
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Last updated
20 May 2024