''Bosistoa medicinalis'', commonly known as the northern towra or Eumundi bosistoa, is a species of small to medium-sized rainforest tree that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to Queensland. It has simple and

pinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

leaves with two or three leaflets and

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

s of small white flowers.

Description

''Bosistoa medicinalis'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of bout high and has hard bark. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and are usually trifoliate, long on a petiole long. The leaves are sometimes simple or have two leaflets, but there are usually three egg-shaped leaflets, each long and wide, the end leaflet on a

petiolule In botany, the petiole () is the stalk that attaches the leaf blade to the stem, and is able to twist the leaf to face the sun. This gives a characteristic foliage arrangement to the plant. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole in som ...

long. Simple leaves are long. The leaflets have prominent oil

glands In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

and a pointed tip. Each twig ends with two simple leaves and a terminal bud. The flowers are borne in panicles long, the

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s long and joined at the base, the

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s long. Flowering occurs from February to October and the fruit is an oval to spherical follicle long, maturing from October to March. The seeds are oval to kidney-shaped, about long.

Taxonomy

Northern towra was first formally described in 1866 by

Ferdinand von Mueller Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (german: Müller; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Vict ...

who gave it the name ''Pagetia medicinalis'' and published the description in '' Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae''. In 1977,

Thomas Gordon Hartley Thomas Gordon Hartley (9 January 1931 in Beaumont, Texas – 8 March 2016 in Canberra, Australia) was an American botanist. Biography In 1955 Hartley graduated in botany with the academic degree Bachelor of Science at the University of Wisconsin-E ...

changed the name to ''Bosistoa medicinalis'' in the ''

Journal of the Arnold Arboretum The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is a botanical research institution and free public park, located in the Jamaica Plain and Roslindale neighborhoods of Boston, Massachusetts. Established in 1872, it is the oldest public arboretum in N ...

''.

Distribution and habitat

''Bosistoa medicinalis'' grows in rainforest, often dry rainforest in near-coastal areas between the

Pascoe River The Pascoe River is a river located in Far North Queensland, Australia. The headwaters rise under Mount Yangee in the Table Range, part of the Great Dividing Range at the northern end of Cape York Peninsula. The river initially flows south t ...

in northern Queensland to

Woombye Woombye is a town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Woombye had a population of 3,246 people. Geography Woombye is located on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sunshine ...

in south-eastern Queensland.

Conservation status

This species is listed as of "least concern" under the Queensland Government ''

Nature Conservation Act 1992 The ''Nature Conservation Act 1992'' is an act of the Parliament of Queensland, Australia, that, together with subordinate legislation, provides for the legislative protection of Queensland's threatened biota. As originally published, it prov ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15389084 medicinalis Sapindales of Australia Flora of Queensland Plants described in 1866 Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller