Syzygium apodophyllum
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}}
{{Use Australian English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Syzygium-apodophyllum-SF22314-01.jpg
|image_caption = Foliage
|status = LC
|status_system = QLDNCA
|status_ref = {{R|DESQLD}}
|genus = Syzygium
|species = apodophyllum
|authority = (F.Muell.) B.Hyland{{R|APNI|POWO}}
|synonyms = Eugenia apodophylla {{small|F.Muell.}}
|synonyms_ref = {{R|POWO}}
}}
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.
Description
The tree grows some 1 to 6m tall, sometimes up to 20m.{{cite book |last1=Cooper |first1=Wendy |author2-link=William T. Cooper |last2=Cooper |first2=William T. |title=Fruits of the Rain Forest: A guide to fruits in Australian tropical rain forests |date=1994 |publisher=RD Press |location=Surry Hills, NSW |isbn=0864387784 |pages=268–9 }}
The trunk is rarely more than 30 cm diameter, the bark is pale brown. 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.{{R|IPNI}} 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.{{R|HYLAND}}
=Phylogeny=
This species is most closely related to Syzygium corynanthum, nestled in a slightly larger clade with Syzygium canicortex.{{R|BIFFIN}}
=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 wikt:a- 'without' and the suffix wikt:-phyllum 'leaf'. It may be translated as "leaf without a leg" and refers to the very short petiole.{{R|COOPER2}}
The species is commonly known as rex satinash in Australia.{{R|RFK}}
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 {{cvt|300|km}} to the northwest of Rossville. It inhabits well-developed rainforest at altitudes up to about {{cvt|1500|m}}, but tends to be more common in mountain rainforest.{{R|RFK|COOPER2|AVH}}
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.{{cite book |last1=Pegg |first1=Geoff |last2=Carnegie |first2=Angus |last3=Giblin |first3=Fiona |last4=Perry |first4=Suzy |title=Final Report: Managing myrtle rust in Australia: CRC2063 |date=2018 |publisher=Plant Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre |location=Bruce, ACT}}
Uses
References
{{Reflist|26em|refs=
{{cite web |url=https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/rest/name/apni/64584 |title=Syzygium apodophyllum |website=Australian Plant Name Index (APNI) |publisher=Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research, Australian Government |access-date=14 February 2025}}
{{cite web |url=https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species-search/details/?id=12089 |title=Species profile—Syzygium apodophyllum |year=2024 |website=Queensland Department of Environment and Science |publisher=Queensland Government |access-date=14 February 2025}}
{{cite web |title=Syzygium apodophyllum (F.Muell.) B.Hyland |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:913368-1 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=14 February 2025}}
{{cite web |title=Search: species: Syzygium apodophyllum {{!}} Occurrence records |url=https://avh.ala.org.au/occurrences/search?taxa=Syzygium%20apodophyllum#tab_mapView |website=Australasian Virtual Herbarium |publisher=Australian Government |access-date=14 February 2025}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.ipni.org/n/593627-1 |title=Eugenia apodophyllum |website=International Plant Names Index (IPNI) |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |year=2025 |access-date=14 February 2025}}
{{cite web |url=https://apps.lucidcentral.org/rainforest/text/entities/Syzygium_apodophyllum.htm |title=Syzygium apodophyllum |author1=F.A.Zich |author2=B.P.M.Hyland |author3=T.Whiffen |author4=R.A.Kerrigan |author2-link=Bernard Hyland |year=2020 |website=Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants Edition 8 (RFK8) |publisher=Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government |access-date=2 July 2021}}
}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q15381284}}