154 PRINCIPES lYot'24 Pincipes,24(4),1980, pp. t54-l6l Palms in NortheasternAustralia II: Speciesfroin the CooktownArea J. M. CoveCEVICH AND JEANETTE COVACEVICH P.O. Box 5046,Cairns, Qld.4870 and QueensLandJIuseum, Gregory Terrace Fortitude Valley, Qld. 4006,Australia Approximately 30 species of palms Species from one of these areas, occur naturally in mainland Australia. Iron Range, where there is a high de- Most of these are found only in the gree of palm diversity, have been de- "rain" moist, closed or forests of scribed (Covacevich and Covacevich coastalQueensland and speciesdiver- 1978).Thirteen specieswere recorded sity reaches a peak in the tropical from the closed forests and open for- closedforests of northeasternQueens- ests adjoining them at Iron Range. land. In Australia the following genera Cooktown is a small, historically sig- are almost invariably associated with nificant town 400 km south of Iron closed felssls-1416hontophoenix, Ar- Range (Fig. 1). Within 50 km of Cook- enga, Calamus, Hydriastele, Laccos- town (Fig. 2), most of the palm species p(rdix, Licuala, Linospadix, Norman- from Iron Range occur with several bya, and Ptychospermo. Species of other species. More palm species(lB) Liuistona are more widespread, oc- have been recorded close to Cooktown curring coastally and in drier areas of than in any other area in Australia. eastern. northern. and western Aus- This represents an extremely diverse tr alia; Carp entaria and. Gronop hyllurn palm flora by Australian standards. are endemic to the Northern Territory; The study area (Fig. 2, Cooktown and Corypha is represented in open and surrounds within a radius of 50 forested areas of Northern Queens- km) supportsvaried vegetationtypes- land.. Cocos nucifera is confined to lit- complex notophyll vine forest of the toral areas of northeastern Australia northern part of the Mossman Cook- "block," and off-shore islands. town isoldted pockets of riv- The closed forests of eastern Aus- erine vine forest (alongthe Mclvor and tralia, where most of Australia's palms Endeavour Rivers), some semidecid- occur, have been the subject of exten- uous vine forest (Mt. Cook), and open sive research and have been classified sclerophyll forest and heaths (in the structurally and floristically (Webb rarestand north). Palms recorded in 1959, 1968; Everist and Webb 1975). this area are set out below, together Their disjunct occurrence is shown in with data on their occurrence in the Figure l. In northeastern Queensland , study area and their Australian distri- (north of Townsville, 19o16' 146"49'), bution. They are arranged alphabeti- extensiveblocks of closedforest occur cally by genus and, within genera, by at Lockerbie, in the Mclllwraith species. Range (including Iron Range), be- Archontophoenix alexandrae (Fig. tween Cooktown and Mossman, on the 3d). Status: very common. Occurrence Atherton Tableland, and in the Mt. in study orea.' Mossman-Mt Amos, Spec area. Dowling Range closed forest; Endea- l9B0l COVACEVICH AND COVACEVICH: NORTIIEASTERN AUSTRALIA II vour River and Mclvor systems. ,4LLs- tralian distribution: Mackay, NE.Q.- Iron Range, NE.Q' Notes: alwaYs as- sociated with swamPs or drain3ge lines. Arenga australasica (Fig. 4d). Sra- fns: only four trees known in area, Oc- currence in studY ared: Mt Cook; Wil- liams Creek, a tributarY of the Endeavour River. Australian distri- bution: Tully, NE.Q.-Cooktown, NE.Q.; well known on near coastal is- lands. Notes: found in stony creek beds, sandy and red basalt soils. Calarnus australis (Fig. 3c). Status: very common. Occurrence in studY area: Daintree Mt Amos, Dowling Range closed forest; Mt Cook. Austra- Iian distribution: Tully, NE.Q.-?Iron Range, NE.Q. Notes: found to about trns 1000 m frequently along tracks and in other clearings. 7 Calamus caryotoides. Status: com- Occurrence in study area: Dain- mon. 9r 8D tl tree-Mt Amos, Dowling Range closed lot forest; Mt Cook. Australian d,istribu- tion: Tully, NE.Q.-?Iron Range, I NE.Q. Notes:found to about 1000 m. Calamus amischus. Status: com- l. Northern Queensland showing occurrence "blocks" mon. Occuyrencein stud,yarea: Moss- of disjunct of rain forest. I, Lockerbie; man-Mt Amos, Dowling Range closed 2, Shelburne Bay; 3, Iron Range; 4, Mclllwraith forest. Australian distribution' Moss- Range; 5, Mt. Webb; 6, Cooktown-Mossman; mile man, NE.Q.-Cooktown, NE.Q. 7, Cairns-Athertonl 8, Kirramal 9, 40 Wallaman Falls; 11, Hinchinbrook common. Oc- scrub: 10. Calarnus moti. Status.' Island; 12, Mt. Spec (from Monteith 1979). curretucein stud'y area.' Mossrilan-Mt Amos, Dowling Range closed forests. Australian distribution' Mossman, NE.Q.-Cooktown, NE.Q. Corypha elata (Fig.5). Storus: com- Calamus species (Fig' 6d). Status: mon in pockets. Occurrence in study common. Occurrence in studY area: area.' Normanby River system only. Mossman-Mt Amos, Dowling Range Australian distribution: along rivers of closed forests. Australian distribu- Princess Charlotte Bay, NE.Q. and of tion.' Mossman, NE.Q.-Cooktown, the Gulf of Carpentaria. Notes: favors NE.Q. drier open forested areas, invariably Cocos nucifera. Status: very com- associatedwith rivers or lagoons; often mon. Occufience in stud'y area: coast- in sand or clay. ally, throughout the area. Australian H yd,riastelewendlandiana (Fig. 4c). d,istribution' coastal northeastern Status: common in pockets' Occur- ared: Endeavour and Queensland. rence in study ir.F ii' PRINCIPES %Koun"n .Clr. ? Scale r:r- __l okm"5 2. Map of the study area. I9BO]COVACEVICHANDCOVACEVICH:NORTFIEASTERNAUSTRALIAII 3' Parmsor northeastern At ",'l1'i;,i',,!i'!,"'f,![!],T,to]Ixil'"1;,2::;:::dir intermedia (?); c' caL' PRINCIPES [Yor. 24 4. Palms of northeastern Australia. a, Nypa fruticans; b, Normanbya normanbyi; c, Hydriuste.le uendlandiana; d, Arenga australosica. 3 I9B0] COVACEVICHAND COVACEVICH: NORTTIEASTTRNAUSTRAT,IA II 5. Corypha elata in northeastern Australia. a, mature trees; b, base offronds; c, mature tree in fruit; d, dead tree following shedding of fruit. PRINCIPES [Vor. 24 19801 COVACEVICHAND COVACEVICH: NORTTIEASTERNAUSTRALIA II 16I Mclvor River systems.Australian dis- Range closed forest. Australian dis- tribution: Tully, NE.Q.-tip of Cape tribution: Mossman, NE.Q.-Mt Amos, York Peninsula and some Torres NE.Q. Notes: found up to 500 m al- Strait islands. Notes: found only aLlow Yraysin dense closed forest. altitudes, usually along creeks. Nypa fruticans (Fig. 4a). Status: (rastralasic(r in two localities. Occur- Laccospadix (Fig. 6a, dense stands ' b), Status: common. Occurrence in rence in study area: Mclvor and Mor- study area: Daintree-Mt Amos, Dow- gan River estuaries. Australian distri- ling Range closed forest. Australian bution: Ingham, NE.Q.-tip of Cape distribution: Innisfail NE.Q.-Mt York Peninsula; not in all estuaries. Amos, NE.Q. Notes: usually above Notes: always associated with brack- 700 m. ish water. Licuala ramsayi (Fig. 3a). Status: Ptychosperma elegans. Status: very very common. Occurrence in studY common. Occurrence in study area: area: Mossman-Mt Amos, Dowling Mossman-Mt Amos, Dowling Range Range closed forest; a pure stand oc- closed forest; riverine forests ofEndea- curs near Cedar Bay. Australian dis- vour and Mclvor River systems. Aus- tribution: Tully, NE.Q.-Iron Range, tralian distribution: Mackay, NE.Q.- NE.Q.; ?Jardine River. Notes: fre- Iron Range, NE.Q. Notes: a lowland quently associated with drainage lines closed forest species, often very close and swampy areas. to the coast. Linospadix intermedia (?) (Fig. 3b). Status: common. Occurrence in study Lrt"*"uuu Crt"o @red..'Mossman-Mt Amos, Dowling Covecrvrcn,J. M. ervnJrl.Nnrru Cov.lcnv- Range closed forest. Australian dis- rcs. 1978. Palms of northeastern Australia tribution: Atherton Tableland, NE.Q.- IL Species from Iron Range, far North- Principes 22(3): 88- Mclllwraith Range, NE.Q. I[ores.' usu- eastern Queensland. 94. ally above 200 m. Evrnrsr, S. L. ,q.woL. J. Wrss. 1975. Two Liuistona species (? d'ecipiens, ? communities of urgent concern in Queens- benthamii). Status: common. Occur- land: Mitchell Grass and Tropical Closed (ed.). rence in study area: north area of the Forests. 1n F. Fenner A National Sys- tem of Ecological Reserves in Australia. Endeavour River. Repoils of The Australian Academy of Sci- Liuistona muelleri (Fig. 6c). Status: ence Number 19. very common. Occurrence iP studY MoutrIrn, C. B. 1979. Systematic studies of area: Ihrorghout open forest in the Australian Aradidae (Hemiptera: Heterop- Ph.D. thesis, University area. Australian distribution: Cairns, tera). Unpublished of Queensland. NE.Q.-tip of Cape York Peninsula. Wrrn, L. J. 1959. A physiognomic classifica- Notes: often found in dense stands of tion of Australian rain forests. J. Ecol. 47: clay soils. 551-570. Normanbya normanbyi (Fig. ab). 1968. Environmental relationships of types of Australian rain forest study the structural Status: corimon. Occurrence in vegetation. Ecology 49(2): 296-BLl. oreo.' Mossman-Mt Amos, Dowling e 6. Palms in northeastern Australia, a,b, Laccospad.ixaustralasica; c, Liaistona muellerii d, Calamus specres..