 | Agathis vitiensis (Seem.) Bentham & Hooker f.Common NamesMelanesian kauri (1).Taxonomic notesSyn: A. obtusa (Lindl.) Mast., A. macrophylla (Lindl.) Mast.Description"A stout tree 30-45 m tall, 3.6-5 m in girth, with wide-spreading branches. Bark whitish, reddish internally, strongly scaly. Crown to 36 m in diameter with huge limbs. Buds small, brown, rounded. Branchlets nearly quadrangular, smooth, olive-brown. Leaves lanceolate, thick, 9-18 cm long by 1.8-5 cm wide, dark green above, narrowed at the apex, margins recurved, often glaucous below, obtuse, with a short flattened petiole. Male strobili cylindrical, 2-2.5 cm long by 0.8-1 cm wide, on a stout peduncle 3-7 mm long; microsporophylls strongly imbricate, margins thin, entire or erose. Female cone ovoid or globular, 9-12.5 cm long by 7-10 cm wide, glaucous; scales acuminate, with a lip. Seed to 1.2 cm long, one wing short, another to 2 cm long by 1.5 cm wide" (1).Range"Solomon Islands; New Hebrides; Fiji, 200-900 m" (1).Big TreeOldestDendrochronologyOne exploratory collection (2) found that "The nature of the wood formation in this species led to problems in the analysis of the cores and poor statistical confidence in the results", although the species is usable for tree age determinations if stem sections can be taken. A second study (3) found that number of rings was only an approximate indicator of age.EthnobotanyObservationsRemarksThis species (as Agathis vitiensisis) is listed as "LR/nt" (lower risk, near threatened) by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Trees database, which adds: "A massive tree and important timber species. It is found in low densities. It could become of conservation concern if logging were to become more intensive."This species is also listed (as Agathis silbae) as "VU D2" (vulnerable, known from fewer than five localities) by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Trees database, which adds: "The Forestry Department in Vanuatu recognise this species as a synonym of A. macrophylla, which in turn is synonymous with A. vitiensis. The taxon encompassing A. silbae according to the SSC Conifer Specialist Group is confined to the island of Santo. Logging is a major threat, but at present land disputes have halted logging activities temporarily." Citations(1) Silba 1986 [as A. macrophylla].(2) Weaver, S.A. 1988. The use of increment cores for the analysis of tree ring chronologies for Fijian kauri (Agathis macrophylla). Tuatara (Wellington) 30:51-54. (3) Ash, J. 1985. Growth rings and longevity of Agathis vitiensis (Seemann) Benth. & Hook. f. ex Drake in Fiji. Australian Journal of Botnay 33(1):81-88. |
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