New Zealand Christmas Tree
Metrosideros excelsus
Summary 5
Metrosideros excelsa (pōhutukawa, New Zealand pohutukawa, New Zealand Christmas tree) is a coastal evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that produces a brilliant display of red flowers made up of a mass of stamens. The pōhutukawa is one of twelve Metrosideros species endemic to New Zealand. Renowned for its vibrant colour and its ability to survive even perched on rocky, precarious cliffs, it has found an important place in New Zealand culture for its strength...
Description 6
The pōhutukawa grows up to 25 metres (82 ft) in height, with a dome-like spreading form. It usually grows as a multi-trunked spreading tree. Its trunks and branches are sometimes festooned with matted, fibrous aerial roots. The oblong, leathery leaves are covered in dense white hairs underneath.
The tree flowers from November to January with a peak in mid to late December (the southern hemisphere summer), with brilliant crimson flowers covering the tree, hence the nickname New Zealand Christmas tree. There is variation between individual trees in the timing of flowering, and in the shade and brightness of the flowers. In isolated populations genetic drift has resulted in local variation: many of the trees growing around the Rotorua lakes produce pink-shaded flowers, and the yellow-flowered cultivar 'Aurea' descends from a pair discovered in 1940 on Mōtiti Island in the Bay of Plenty.
Fuentes y créditos
- (c) Jon Sullivan, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-NC), https://www.flickr.com/photos/mollivan_jon/9512039099/
- (c) sea-kangaroo, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-NC-ND), subido por sea-kangaroo
- (c) Jon Sullivan, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-NC), https://www.flickr.com/photos/mollivan_jon/14354576501/
- (c) Sandy Austin, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/89515722@N00/4139579109
- Adaptado por earthwatchtrees del trabajo de (c) Wikipedia, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrosideros_excelsa
- (c) Wikipedia, algunos derechos reservados (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrosideros_excelsa
Más información
- NaturaLista página del taxón
- African Plants - a photo guide
- Atlas of Living Australia
- Biodiversity Heritage Library
- BOLD Systems BIN search
- Calflora
- CalPhotos
- eFloras.org
- Flora Digital de Portugal
- Flora of North America (beta)
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
- HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
- IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
- Jepson eFlora
- NatureServe Explorer 2.0
- New Zealand Plant Conservation Network
- SEINet Symbiota portals
- Tropicos
- USDA PLANTS database
- World Flora Online
