Araucaria cunninghamii var. papuana

Lauterb. 1914

Common names

New Guinea hoop pine (Silba 1986).

Taxonomic notes

Syn: A. beccarii Warb. 1900 (Farjon 1998).

Description

"A tree 22-60 m. tall, to 1 m. in girth, with symmetrical branches. Bark peeling off in thin rolls. Leaves acute, 1 cm. long by 2.5 mm. wide, keeled on both faces, apex recurved and spine-tipped. Male cone relatively short, 2.5 cm. long by 0.5 cm. wide. Female cone to 11 cm. long, bracts black and longer. Seeds shorter and broader with larger wings, nut 8 mm. wide, wing 10 mm. wide, entire seed 2.5 cm. long by 3.5 cm. wide" (Silba 1986). See García Esteban et al. (2004) for a detailed characterization of the wood anatomy.

Distribution and Ecology

W New Guinea: Papua New Guinea westwards, 610-2400 m (Silba 1986). It often occurs in conjunction with A. hunsteinii. Compared to A. hunsteinii, A. cunninghamii has a dispersed regeneration pattern beneath a closed canopy (rather than relying on gap-phase regeneration) and typically occurs on wetter, less nutrient-rich sites, despite which it maintains higher productivity (Enright 1982a, 1982b).

Remarkable Specimens

No data as of 2023.02.23.

Ethnobotany

No data as of 2023.02.23.

Observations

No data as of 2023.02.23.

Remarks

"In the Owen Stanley Mountains [of Papua New Guinea] a National Park shared between several Provinces (Central, Oro and Milne Bay) should be established. It should include the high altitude areas of the Owen Stanley Ranges, in particular Mts. Albert Edward, Tafa, Scratchley, Obree, Victory (local name: Kerorova), Dayman, and Suckling. The area is of exceptional biological interest with a great variety of plant and animal species. For example ... because of its natural stands of Hoop and Klinkii pine trees. In conclusion there are strong reasons to propose the Owen Stanley Ranges for World Heritage Area listing" (Filer 1991).

See also: the "Remarks" section of A. hunsteinii.

Citations

Enright, N.J. 1982a. The ecology of Araucaria species in New Guinea. I. Ordination Studies of Forest Types and Environments. Australian Journal of Ecology 7(1):23-38.

Enright, N.J. 1982b. The ecology of Araucaria species in New Guinea. III. Population dynamics of sample stands. Australian Journal of Ecology 7(3):227-237.

Filer, Colin (Department of Anthropology & Sociology, University of Papua New Guinea). April 1991. Two shots in the dark: the first year of the task force on environmental planning in priority forest areas. http://lucy.ukc.ac.uk/lien/PNG/YEARONE.html">http://lucy.ukc.ac.uk/lien/PNG/YEARONE.html, accessed 2001.02.03, now defunct.

Lauterbach, C. A. 1914. Neue Pinaceae Papuasiens. Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie 50(4):51. Available: Biodiversity Heritage Library, accessed 2023.03.04.

See also