Syzygium apodophyllum

Syzygium apodophyllum, commonly known as rex statinash, is a tree in the clove and eucalyptus family Myrtaceae endemic to northeast Queensland, Australia. The fruit is edible. It is a host for the exotic plant-pathogen fungus Austropuccinia psidii, which is causing a lot of damage to vegetation communities and economic plants.

Syzygium apodophyllum
Foliage
Conservation status
Least Concern (NCA)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Myrtales
Family:	Myrtaceae
Genus:	Syzygium
Species:	S. apodophyllum
Binomial name
Syzygium apodophyllum (F.Muell.) B.Hyland[2][3]
Synonyms[3]
Eugenia apodophylla F.Muell.

Description

The tree grows some 1 to 6m tall, sometimes up to 20m.^[4][5] The trunk is rarely more than 30 cm diameter, the bark is pale brown.^[4] Branches tend to be of a weeping habit. Leaves have short petioles, some 0.1–02 cm in length, the twigs with leaves have 4 wings, with pairs of wings fused above each pair of leaves, forming a pocket. These wings often obscure the petiole so that leaves appear sessile. The leaf blades are some 3.6-8 by 1.4–3 cm in size. The midrib is depressed on the adaxial/upper surface. The fruit, which are the typically red/pink Syzygium fruit with a watery but crunchy flesh surrounding a solitary large seed, are some 13 by 9mm in size, and either hang solitary in bunches, either axillary or terminally. Seed is up to 9mm in size. Fruiting occurs from March to September.

The wood has a specific gravity of 0.80gcm³.

Taxonomy

This species was first described in 1892 as Eugenia apodophylla by German-born Australian botanist Ferdinand von Mueller. He published the description in the journal The Victorian Naturalist.^[6] In 1983, in a major review of Australian species of Syzygium and its close relatives, Australian botanist Bernard Hyland moved this species to Syzygium under the current binomial name.^[7]

Phylogeny

This species is most closely related to Syzygium corynanthum, nestled in a slightly larger clade with Syzygium canicortex.^[8]

Etymology

The genus name Syzygium comes from the Greek word syzgos, meaning "jointed" and is a reference to the paired leaves displayed by members of the genus. The species epithet apodophyllum is derived from the Ancient Greek word podós meaning 'foot' or 'leg', combined with the prefix a- 'without' and the suffix -phyllum 'leaf'. It may be translated as "leaf without a leg" and refers to the very short petiole.^[9]

The species is commonly known as rex satinash in Australia.^[4]

Distribution and habitat

The tree is endemic to Queensland, Australia, growing in the coastal areas from near Rossville in the north to about Mission Beach in the south, with a small outlier population near Coen about 300 km (190 mi) to the northwest of Rossville. It inhabits well-developed rainforest at altitudes up to about 1,500 m (4,900 ft), but tends to be more common in mountain rainforest.^[4][9][10]

Ecology

The plant is one of the hosts of the exotic plant pathogen Austropuccinia psidii. This species is relatively tolerant of the fungus, but other taxa are severely impacted.^[11]

Uses

This plant is generally a small and not well-developed tree (i.e. it is not that straight in its growth, nor producing long sections). It is regarded as of no commercial value.^[4] The fruit is edible.^[5]