Wodyetia
Encyclopedia
The Foxtail Palm is a species of flowering plant
in the Arecaceae
family
The Palm and Cycads Societies of Australia (PACSOA) describes this Palm as follows:
man brought it to botanists and the world's attention
The Aboriginal name of that Aboriginal man has been recorded as being "Wodyeti", thus the genus name for this Australian endemic species Wodyetia.
, originally decorating the boulder strewn, exposed gravel hills of the Cape Melville
range, wholly within the Cape Melville National Park
.
The area has been recognised for its rich biocultural diversity
, having long and intense Aboriginal associations and a rich biodiversity.
In addition to being a habitat for Foxtail Palms, the Melville Range is a habitat for animals such as the Godman's rock-wallaby (Petrogale godmani), the tropical ring-tailed gecko (Cyrtodactylus
louisiadensi) plus endemic frogs and lizards such as the Cape Melville boulder skink (Cryptoblepharus
fuhni), the Melville Range treefrog (Litoria andiirrmalin) and the Cape Melville boulderfrog (Cophixalus zweifeli
).
Foliage: Variance of greenish colors; deep green to light green colors. Received its more commonly known Australian-English name from the appearance of its foliage, which is in a shape of a fox
’s tail.
Fruits: 2 inches long. Olive green to green in the early stages. Orange red when ripe..
Trunk: Similar to the king palm
, the foxtail palm trunk is smooth, thin, and self-cleaning. It grows a single, double, or triple trunk that is slightly spindle-shaped to columnar reaching heights of about 30 ft. The trunk also has a closely ringed, dark grey to light gray color which slowly turns more and more white. The crownshaft of the foxtail palm is light to bright green and slightly swollen at the base.
. being the Cape Melville
range, within the Cape Melville National Park
. It was classed as a rare palm, both within Queensland
, and on the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species.
After it became known to the world, the Foxtail Palm's seeds were so highly sought after that a thriving blackmarket trade formed, with illegal collectors nearly decimating the in situ populations, but ultimately resulting in the palm becoming widely distributed across the world, fruiting in the many tens of thousands, being progressively planted out as one of the "world's most popular" palms.
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
in the Arecaceae
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
family
The Palm and Cycads Societies of Australia (PACSOA) describes this Palm as follows:
"Very attractive palm with long (2-3m.) plumose leaves (hence the name 'Foxtail'), and up to 10m tall with a grey trunk. It produces large (about the size of a duck egg) orange fruit"
Etymology
Most of the world was unaware of the existence of this 'spectacular' palm until 1978, when an AboriginalAustralian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
man brought it to botanists and the world's attention
The Aboriginal name of that Aboriginal man has been recorded as being "Wodyeti", thus the genus name for this Australian endemic species Wodyetia.
Ecology and Habitat
The Foxtail Palm is endemic to a very small part of AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, originally decorating the boulder strewn, exposed gravel hills of the Cape Melville
Cape Melville
Cape Melville is a headland on the eastern coast of the Cape York Peninsula. To its west lies Princess Charlotte Bay. It is part of the Cape Melville National Park....
range, wholly within the Cape Melville National Park
Cape Melville National Park
Cape Melville is a national park in Queensland, Australia, located 1711 km northwest of Brisbane....
.
The area has been recognised for its rich biocultural diversity
Biocultural diversity
Biocultural diversity: diversity of life in all its manifestations — biological, cultural, and linguistic — which are interrelated within a complex socio-ecological adaptive system.-See also:* Biocultural anthropology* Biocultural evolution...
, having long and intense Aboriginal associations and a rich biodiversity.
In addition to being a habitat for Foxtail Palms, the Melville Range is a habitat for animals such as the Godman's rock-wallaby (Petrogale godmani), the tropical ring-tailed gecko (Cyrtodactylus
Cyrtodactylus
Cyrtodactylus is a diverse genus of Asian geckos, commonly known as bent-toed geckos or bow-fingered geckos. It has at least 135 described species at present, which makes it the largest of all gecko genera. Instead of possessing dilated digits like other geckos, members of Cyrtodactylus have...
louisiadensi) plus endemic frogs and lizards such as the Cape Melville boulder skink (Cryptoblepharus
Cryptoblepharus
Cryptoblepharus is a genus of skinks commonly called snake-eyed skinks or shining-skinks. They occupy a fairly basal position among the Eugongylus group.-Species:*Cryptoblepharus adamsi Horner, 2007...
fuhni), the Melville Range treefrog (Litoria andiirrmalin) and the Cape Melville boulderfrog (Cophixalus zweifeli
Cophixalus zweifeli
Cophixalus zweifeli is a species of frog in the Microhylidae family.It is endemic to Australia.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:...
).
Physical Attributes
Flowering: White flowers stalk that comes from the base of the crownshaft.Foliage: Variance of greenish colors; deep green to light green colors. Received its more commonly known Australian-English name from the appearance of its foliage, which is in a shape of a fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
’s tail.
Fruits: 2 inches long. Olive green to green in the early stages. Orange red when ripe..
Trunk: Similar to the king palm
Archontophoenix alexandrae
Archontophoenix alexandrae is a palm native to Queensland, Australia....
, the foxtail palm trunk is smooth, thin, and self-cleaning. It grows a single, double, or triple trunk that is slightly spindle-shaped to columnar reaching heights of about 30 ft. The trunk also has a closely ringed, dark grey to light gray color which slowly turns more and more white. The crownshaft of the foxtail palm is light to bright green and slightly swollen at the base.
Distribution
When, in 1978, this palm was first identified, named, and revealed to the world, it was endemic only to a very small part of AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. being the Cape Melville
Cape Melville
Cape Melville is a headland on the eastern coast of the Cape York Peninsula. To its west lies Princess Charlotte Bay. It is part of the Cape Melville National Park....
range, within the Cape Melville National Park
Cape Melville National Park
Cape Melville is a national park in Queensland, Australia, located 1711 km northwest of Brisbane....
. It was classed as a rare palm, both within Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, and on the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species.
After it became known to the world, the Foxtail Palm's seeds were so highly sought after that a thriving blackmarket trade formed, with illegal collectors nearly decimating the in situ populations, but ultimately resulting in the palm becoming widely distributed across the world, fruiting in the many tens of thousands, being progressively planted out as one of the "world's most popular" palms.
