Corokia macrocarpa

COMMON NAME Hokataka, whakataka

FAMILY

AUTHORITY macrocarpa Kirk

FLORA CATEGORY Vascular – Native

ENDEMIC TAXON Yes

ENDEMIC No

ENDEMIC FAMILY Photo by John Smith-Dodsworth. No

STRUCTURAL CLASS & - Dicotyledons

NVS CODE CORMCC

CHROMOSOME NUMBER 2n = 18

CURRENT CONSERVATION STATUS 2012 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: IE, RR

PREVIOUS CONSERVATION STATUSES 2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: CD, IE 2004 | Range Restricted

BRIEF DESCRIPTION Tall with pointed greyish leaves that are white underneath Corokia macrocarpa. Photographer: Peter de inhabiting the Chatham Islands. Leaves somewhat leathery, margin Lange curved, 4-8cm long by 1.5-3.5cm wide, with white fuzz underneath. Flower yellow, star-shaped, with orange centre. Fruit orange.

DISTRIBUTION Endemic to the Chatham Islands and is found on Chatham, South East, Pitt and Mangere islands.

HABITAT This small or shrub occurs at sites near the sea, but can be found in a range of habitats, including open forest, cliffs, limestone outcrops and near lakes and lagoons, as well as rocky shores and beaches.

FEATURES A small tree that can grow up to 6 m tall and has dark brown bark. The leaves are leathery, slightly curled at the margins and may vary in size depending on the habitat. It produces yellow flowers from November to April, while the orange or yellow fruit can be seen throughout the year.

FLOWERING November - April

FLOWER COLOURS Yellow FRUITING Throughout year

LIFE CYCLE Fleshy drupes are dispersed by frugivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).

ETYMOLOGY corokia: From the Maori name korokio or korokia-tarango macrocarpa: Large fruit

ATTRIBUTION Fact sheet prepared by P.J. de Lange for NZPCN (1 June 2013)

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING Moorfield, J. C. (2005). Te aka : Maori-English, English-Maori dictionary and index. Pearson Longman: Auckland, N.Z. Thorsen, M. J.; Dickinson, K. J. M.; Seddon, P. J. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285-309

CITATION Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Corokia macrocarpa Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/corokia-macrocarpa/ (Date website was queried)

MORE INFORMATION https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/corokia-macrocarpa/