Assignment/exercise
UniSC Plant Profile - Fabaceae, Castanospermum australe
University of the Sunshine Coast
2024
Appears in UniSC Plant Profiles
Abstract
Castanospermum australe is a large tree to 35m that grows in wet areas, such as watercourses and rainforests, along the coastal regions North from Lismore, NSW (ANBG, 2015). The pinnate leaves are alternate with a terminal leaflet. They grow to 20cm long and are a dark glossy green with a much paler underside (Leiper et al, 2022). The flowers are a typical pea flower 3-4cm long with showy red and yellow sections, which are displayed randomly along the stems and branches (ANBG, 2015). The large flowers make it a favoured feeding tree for nectivorous bird species such as parrots, which also assists in the pollination process (Fern, 2022). Once pollinated the flowers turn to large seed pods up to 20cm long and 6cm wide. The pods split in two, containing up to 5 beans weighing up to 30gms each (ANBG, 2015). The seeds are poisonous and if ingested raw and can cause severe diarrhoea, vomiting and abdominal pain. The sawdust from the tree can also cause dermatitis (QPIC, 2023). C. australe contains chemicals that have been shown to have anti-cancer, anti inflammatory and anti-HIV properties, which was important to Indigenous Australians (Fern, 2022).
Details
- Title
- UniSC Plant Profile - Fabaceae, Castanospermum australe
- Authors
- Callaghan Ryan - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Location
- Latitude: -27.164 Longitude: 152.939; Burpengary Creek, Gallery Rainforest. Moreton Bay Regional Council.
- Publisher
- University of the Sunshine Coast
- Date collected
- 03-Apr-2024
- Date published
- 2024
- Copyright note
- (c) The Author. Reproduced with permission.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991093996202621
- Output Type
- Assignment/exercise; Plant Profile Sheet
- Teaching and Learning
- ENS221; Plant Diversity and Ecology
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