Ascarina lucida var. lanceolata
Common names
Kermadec Islands Hutu
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Small bushy tree of upland Kermadec Islands. Leaves narrow and tapering to a narrow tip and with coarse black-tipped teeth on margins. Flowers in clusters of spikes. Fruit small, white.
Flower colours
Green, Red/Pink
Detailed description
Glabrous gynodioecious tree up to 15 m tall. Trunk up to 500 mm diameter. Bark greyish-white. Branchlets slender, striate, initially pale green maturing dark green to emerald green. Interpetiolar stipules conspicuous, comprising 3 1.2-2.6 mm long pale pink to red, filaments; these connate near base, behind which are 3-6 smaller hyaline filaments. Petioles up to 15-20 mm long, lamina subcoriacous, somewhat fleshy, 50-100 × 10-30 mm, green, emerald green to dark green above, paler beneath, serrations weakly pigmented, pink to pale maroon often fading into pale pink spotting, narrowly lanceolate, lanceolate, lanceolate- oblong to narrowly elliptic, acuminate to acute. Inflorescences spicate comprising female or mixed male and female spikes on separated trees; spikes congested, oppositely arranged, solitary or rather closely branched up to 5 times, branches up to 30 mm long. Flowers alternate, sessile, subtended by 4 green, 0.8-1.0 mm long, entire, deltoid to broadly ovate, acute bracts (apex pink or doted with pink). Male flowers with one anther 2.0-3.0 mm long. Female flower smaller, solitary or 2-3 together located between anther and stem; stigma broad, sessile, ovary sessile. Fruit 3.0-2.0 mm long, broadly ovoid, fleshy, white and maroon-blotched or maroon-striped, subcylindric drupe.
Similar taxa
Ascarina lucida var. lucida of the North and South Islands is New Zealand is clearly related. It differs from A. lucida var. lanceolata by the dark purple stems; by the 3 simple, conspicuous, reddish-purple filamentous stipules which lack fused bases; smaller, yellow-green leaves with purple-black or dark maroon pigmented serrations; more openly branched inflorescences with less congested flowers, and white drupes. Ascarina lucida var. lucida seems to be monoecious while A. lucida var. lanceolata appears to be gynodioecious - but this aspect needs further study.
Distribution
Endemic. Kermadec Islands, Raoul Island only.
Habitat
One of the characteristic trees of the wet forests of Raoul Island which are mostly found above 245m. However, in the ravines this tree may extend down to almost sea level. In the wet forest it is mostly a subcanopy tree which co-associates with Coprosma acutifolia, Pseudopanax kermadecensis, Melicytus aff. ramiflorus and on occasion Boehmeria australis subsp. dealbata. Occasionally, such as on the ridge lines and crater rim it may form part of the forest canopy.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: IE, OL
Threats
Naturally Uncommon. A locally abundant tree of the wetter forest and ravine vegetaton on Raoul. It is listed only because of its natural geographic restriction to a single island.
Detailed taxonomy
Genus
Family
Synonyms
Ascarina lanceolata Hook.f.
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
July - December
Fruiting
January - August
Propagation technique
Easy from cuttings and fresh seed but rather cold sensitive. In ideal conditions, and given time this variety can form a very large, spreading tree.
Other information
Etymology
lucida: Shining
lanceolata: Lance-shaped
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
ASCLVL
Chromosome number
2n = 26
Previous conservation statuses
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2017 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: IE, OL
2012 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: IE, OL
2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: IE, OL
2004 | Not Threatened
Referencing and citations
Attribution
Fact Sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 1 January 2010. Description by P.J. de Lange based on cultivated plants, herbarium and fresh specimens.
NZPCN Fact Sheet citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Ascarina lucida var. lanceolata Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/ascarina-lucida-var-lanceolata/ (Date website was queried)