Choriceras majus Airy Shaw

Airy Shaw, H.K. (1981) Muelleria 4(3): 220. Type: Qld, Cook Dist., Timber Reserve 165, Pieter Botte L.A., Hyland 9365; holo: K, iso: QRS.

Daintree Choriceras

Living bark layer quite thin. Sapwood surface corrugated.

Leaf blades about 8-15 x 3.5-7 cm. Lateral veins forming loops well inside the blade margin. Younger leafy twigs somewhat diamond shaped in transverse section. Small oil dots visible with a lens.

Inflorescences shorter than the leaves, often not much longer than the petioles. Flowers about 2.5 mm diam.

Capsule 3-horned, about 8-10 mm diam., completely disintegrating when the seeds are shed, leaving only the central axis still attached to the tree.

Cotyledons orbicular, about 11-13 mm diam., with 3-5 veins radiating from the base. Pale glands visible with a lens on the lower surface of the cotyledons. First pair of leaves with about 6-8 teeth on each side of the leaf blade. Stipules caducous. At the tenth leaf stage: leaf blade narrowly elliptic-lanceolate, about 20-27 small teeth on each side of the leaf blade, +/- serrulate, each tooth ending in a small apiculate callous tip, glabrous. Lateral veins about 11-15, strongly looping. Small oil-like dots visible with a lens. Stipules about 0.5 mm long, caducous. Terminal and axillary buds pinkish red. Stem clothed in very short hairs. Stem becoming flattened at and just below the nodes. Seed germination time 37 days.

Endemic to NEQ, restricted to the area between China Camp and the Daintree River. Altitudinal range from near sea level to 700 m. Grows in well developed rain forest on the coastal lowlands and foothills.