Dacrydium novoguineense

Gibbs (1917)

Common names

In New Guinea it is kaowié or kowié [Arfak, Manikiong], aru [Wissel Lakes, Kapauko], or munump [Nondugl, Minj]; (de Laubenfels 1988).

Taxonomic notes

Type: Indonesia, Papua, Arfak Mountains, Koebre Ridge, 1913.12, L. S. Gibbs 5648 (lectotype BM000959885). Syn. Corneria novoguineensis (Gibbs) A.V.Bobrov & Melikyan. Sometimes spelled "novo-guineense". Phylogenetic placement within Dacrydium has not been investigated.

Description

Trees 1.5-30 m tall and up to 50 cm dbh, with ascending branches and numerous lower-order branches producing a dense rounded crown. Bark scaly; outer bark brown to blackish; inner bark reddish, slightly resinous. Twigs variable in width, thread-like or more robust. Foliage of two types, juvenile and adult. Juvenile leaves needle-like, on seedlings and saplings 5-12 × 0.4-0.6 mm, shorter on young trees (especially at base of twigs), curved forward, spreading at less than 45° from the shoot, strongly keeled abaxially, sharply pointed. Transitional leaves may appear on mature trees, but usually there is an abrupt transition to adult leaves, which are also present on saplings less than 1 m tall. Adult leaves scale-like on slender, cord-like, much-branched shoots 2-7 cm long and 0.8-2.3 mm wide, appressed, oblong-rhombic, 1.3-2 × 0.3-0.5 mm on near ends of twigs, slightly larger on leading shoots, rounded or keeled abaxially, obtuse or acute with an incurved apex. Amphistomatic (stomata on all sides), on juvenile leaves in narrow grooves, on adult leaves in scattered lines, mostly adaxial. Pollen cones terminal on twigs with adult leaves, 5-8 × 1.5 mm at maturity; microsporophylls triangular, 1.2 × 1 mm, obtuse or apiculate, with two basal reddish pollen sacs, turning brown. Seed cones terminal on twigs with adult leaves, 3 mm long, covered with elongated bracts to 3 mm long, turning red at maturity. Seeds solitary, obliquely positioned, covered only at base by the epimatium, 4-5 mm long, turning dark brown (de Laubenfels 1988, Farjon 2010).

Distribution and Ecology

Indonesia (C & SE Sulawesi, Moluccas), Papua New Guinea. Occurs at elevations of 700-3000 m on varied soil types including clay, sand, quartzite, and peat. Typically it is found as a canopy tree in open forest, especially on mountain ridges. In forests at middle altitudes (1500-2200 m) it is an emergent above the general canopy, but higher up on ridges it becomes a small tree among other scrub and tree ferns. Increased fire frequency since the arrival of humans is thought to be a major driver of podocarp extinction in Australia, but this is one of the few tropical podocarp species that can persist despite fires. It is a locally prominent component of tree fern grasslands and thickets that occur near tree lines on tropical mountains, even though indigenous peoples burn these areas. It often regenerates abundantly after fire, when it can become temporarily dominant (Coomes and Bellingham 2011, de Laubenfels 1988, Farjon 2010).

Distribution data for all species, from GBIF Occurrence Download https://doi.org/10.15468/dl.yvmru2 accessed 2025.12.08. D. novoguineense color is magenta. Click on any point for more info.

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

In 2011 the IUCN assessed the conservation status of this species as "Least Concern" because it has a widespread but scattered distribution with some subpopulations occurring on remote mountain ridges and summits. There is no indication of overall decline of the population. There are few threats; it is logged only locally and on a small scale.

Remarkable Specimens

No data as of 2026-01-10.

Ethnobotany

Although not commercially exploited for its timber, it is logged locally (Farjon 2010).

Observations

No data as of 2026-01-10.

Remarks

The epithet refers to New Guinea, where this species is particularly common.

Citations

Coomes, David A. and Peter J. Bellingham. 2011. Temperate and tropical podocarps: how alike are they? Pp. 119-140 in B. L. Turner and L. A. Cernusak (eds.), Ecology of the Podocarpaceae in Tropical Forests. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany no. 95. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.

de Laubenfels, David J. 1988. Coniferales. P. 337-453 in Flora Malesiana, Series I, Vol. 10. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic. Available: Biodiversity Heritage Library, accessed 2025.12.11.

Gibbs, L. S. 1917. A Contribution to the Phytogeography and Flora of the Arfak Mountains, p. 78. London. Available: Biodiversity Heritage Library, accessed 2025.12.12.

See also

No data as of 2026-01-10.