Agathis robusta

Wikipedia links:       Gymnosperms > Cupressales > Araucariaceae > Agathis robusta

Other links:     

Common name:               Queensland kauri 

• Also, pine or smooth-barked kauri

Conservation status:   Not endangered

Etymology:   

Flowers:                  

Fruit:                         

• The seed cones are globose, 8–13 cm diameter, and mature in 18–20 months after pollination; they disintegrate at maturity to release the seedsThe seed cones are globose, 8–13 cm diameter, and mature in 18–20 months after pollination

• They disintegrate at maturity to release the seeds

• The male (pollen) cones are cylindrical, 5–10 cm long and 1-1.5 cm thick

Leaves:         

• The leaves are 5–12 cm long and 2–5 cm broad

• Tough and leathery in texture, with no midrib

• They are arranged in opposite pairs (rarely whorls of three) 

Stem & branches:      

•  Smooth, scaly bark

Roots:         

Habit:        

• It is a large evergreen tree growing straight and tall to a height of 30–50 m

Habitat:   

Distribution:                  

• It has a disjunct distribution, occurring in Papua New Guinea and Queensland

• Populations in Papua New Guinea may be treated as the distinct species Agathis spathulata

• In Australia, it occurs in two locations, a southern population on Fraser Island and around Maryborough, and a northern population on the Atherton Tableland west of Cairns

• The northern population was formerly distinguished as Agathis palmerstonii, but does not differ from the southern population and is no longer considered distinct

Additional notes:     

• It was heavily logged in the past, and spectacular trees of prodigious size are much rarer than in pre-European times

• Although sometimes called a pine, it is not a true pine, and has leaves, not needles