Callitris neocaledonica (Cèdre candélabre) description

Callitris neocaledonica

Dümmer 1914

Common names

Cèdre candélabre, Nié.

Taxonomic notes

Syn: Nothocallitris neocaledonica (Dummer) A.V. Bobrov & Melikyan 2006. Type: New Caledonia, Grande Terre, Province Sud, Ngoye River, "auf den Bergen am Ngoye", R. Schlechter 15179.

Description

Shrubs, or small trees to 10 m tall with a basal diameter to 50 cm, usually with a single trunk branching near ground level and an open, rounded crown. Bark brown (weathering to gray), scaly, becoming shallowly fissured, rough, exfoliating in long strips. Branches spreading, thick, long, often contorted. Foliar units in dense tufts at ends of main branches, ultimate twigs short, stiff, thick, triangular in cross section, 1.5-2 mm diameter, covered with closely appressed leaves, green, persistent. Mature (scale) leaves in alternate whorls of 3, decurrent, closely appressed, apices appressed or some free especially on whip shoots, linear, 2.5-5 mm long on ultimate branchlets, ca. 1 mm wide, keeled; margins erose-denticulate near obtuse or acute apex; stomata in two narrow marginal bands; abaxial surface smooth on keel, minutely verrucose on sides, green. Pollen cones solitary and terminal on ultimate branchlets, ovoid or subglobose, 2-3 x 2-2.5 mm, yellowish turning brown; microsporophylls 9-12, in alternate whorls of 3, peltate, with erose-denticulate margins, obtuse-acuminate, bearing 3-4 abaxial pollen sacs near the lower margin. Seed cones few, terminal on short, thin, scale-leaved shoots, solitary, maturing in 1 year, caducous (or persistent a short time after seed dispersal), ovoid when closed, 8-10 x 6-7 mm, with convex scales when open, smooth, green maturing brown. Bract-scale complexes in two alternate whorls of 3, not opening very wide, nearly equal in size and shape, 7-8 x 3 mm, narrowly oblong, slightly tapering, rectangular in cross-section, with mostly included bracts forming a prominent and acute umbo below the apex of each scale; adaxial surface smooth, red-brown with inconspicuous seed marks. Columella very long, 5-6 x 1.5-2 mm, angular, with triangular apex. Seeds 1(-2) at base of each upper scale, ovoid or triangular, flattened, 5-7 x 2-2.5 mm, light brown, with small hilum; wings 2 on each side, up to 7 x 1.5 mm, unequal in shape and size (Farjon 2010). Architecture conforms to the Rauh model.

Distribution and Ecology

New Caledonia, Grande Terre, Province Sud, at elevations of 950 to 1,350 m in maquis on ultramafic substrates in the southern massif on New Caledonia. It has an estimated extent of occurrence of 257 km² in more than 10 locations. As most populations are in protected areas, the major threat to the species is wildfire (Thomas 2009). Climate low montane tropical with high rainfall throughout the year. Occurs in scrub (maquis minier) or low sclerophyll forest on slopes or along creeks, in shallow soil on ultramafic substrates (Farjon 2010).

This map shows herbarium records of Callitris species native to New Caledonia. Red is C. neocaledonica, yellow is C. pancheri, and green is C. sulcata. Click on an icon for further information. Distribution data from GBIF (2020.03.30), edited to remove duplicates.

Zone 10 (cold hardiness limit between -1°C and +4.4°C) (Bannister and Neuner 2001).

Remarkable Specimens

Some trees are reported to be up to 15 m tall and 1 m diameter (H. Mackee pers. comm., cited by Jaffré 1995).

Ethnobotany

Observations

Most subpopulations are located in Montagne des Sources and Mt. Humboldt Botanical Reserve, and at least one has been affected by recreational trail construction, but Thomas (2009) does not specify where.

Remarks

The epithet neocaledonica refers to New Caledonia.

Citations

Dümmer 1914. Three conifers. Journal of Botany 52:236-241.

Jaffré, T. 1995. Distribution and Ecology of the Conifers of New Caledonia. Pp. 171-196 in N. J. Enright and R. S. Hill (eds.), Ecology of the Southern Conifers. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.

Thomas, P. 2009. Callitris neocaledonica. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.3. www.iucnredlist.org, accessed 2010.10.22.