''Dendrocnide excelsa'', commonly known as the giant stinging tree or fibrewood, is a rainforest

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

in the family ''

Urticaceae The Urticaceae are a family, the nettle family, of flowering plants. The family name comes from the genus ''Urtica''. The Urticaceae include a number of well-known and useful plants, including nettles in the genus ''Urtica'', ramie (''Boehmeri ...

'' which 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 else ...

to eastern Australia. It occurs from

Tathra, New South Wales Tathra () is a seaside town on the Sapphire Coast found on the South Coast, New South Wales, Australia. As at the , Tathra had a population of 1,675. Nearby points of interest are the Old Tathra Wharf, Mimosa Rocks National Park and Bournda Nat ...

to Imbil in southeastern

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, and is very common at

Dorrigo National Park Dorrigo National Park is a national park in New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney on Dome Road off the Waterfall Way, east of the town of Dorrigo. History The park is part of the New England Group of the World Heritage Site Gondwa ...

and other rainforest walks in eastern Australia. The habitat of the giant stinging tree is subtropical, warm temperate or

littoral The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal a ...

rainforest, particularly in disturbed areas, previously flattened by storms or cyclones.

Description

''Dendrocnide excelsa'' is a medium to large-sized tree with a buttressed base, sometimes over 40 metres tall and in excess of 6 metres wide at the base. The DBH is up to . The trunk can be fluted or flanged. The outer bark is grey and smooth, with minor corky markings. The trunk and buttresses are shaped in even curves. The leaves are alternate and toothed, heart-shaped and very large in positions of shade, exceeding 30 cm in length and a similar width. The sun leaves are smaller. The leaves, which are replete with stinging hairs, are eaten by various insects such as the chrysomelid beetle, and mammals. Flowers appear from November to April, forming in short

panicles 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 o ...

. The fruit is a purple or blackish nut, maturing from March to August. The flesh is edible, but the danger of stinging hairs precludes human consumption. The fruit is eaten by many rainforest birds, including the

regent bowerbird The regent bowerbird (''Sericulus chrysocephalus'') is a medium-sized, up to 25 cm long, sexually dimorphic bowerbird. The male bird is black with a golden orange-yellow crown, mantle and black-tipped wing feathers. It has yellow bill, black ...

and the

green catbird The green catbird (''Ailuroedus crassirostris'') is a species of bowerbird found in subtropical forests along the east coast of Australia, from southeastern Queensland to southern New South Wales. It is named after its distinctive call which soun ...

Sting

All aerial parts of the tree have stinging hairs, and can cause a severe reaction on contact with skin, so it is a hazard to livestock, travelers and campers. However, the tree is an important member of the ecosystems of eastern Australian forests. The sting is considered more severe than ''

Dendrocnide photinophylla ''Dendrocnide photinophylla'', the shining-leaved stinging tree, is a rainforest tree of eastern Australia. It occurs from near the Colo River northwest of Sydney to Cooktown in tropical Queensland. A versatile species, it occurs in many diff ...

'' (shining-leaved stinging tree), but not as severe as ''

Dendrocnide moroides ''Dendrocnide moroides'', commonly known in Australia as the stinging tree, stinging bush, Queensland Stinger or gympie-gympie, is a plant in the nettle family Urticaceae found in rainforest areas of Malaysia and Australia. It is notorious for it ...

'' (gympie stinger). The tree delivers neurotoxin proteins which researchers named ''gympietides'', similar to toxins found in spiders and cone snails, and not previously seen in plants. It was postulated that the long-term pain from the gympietides may be due to permanent changes in the sodium channels in sensory neurons. Leaf surface of Giant Stinging Tree

The venom binds to and fires pain receptors in the nervous system; there are hopes that understanding how these proteins work could lead to the creation of new painkillers. Minor stings can last for an hour or two. However, severe stinging can last for months. First aid for the sting is to apply wax hair-removal strips and then yank them off to remove the trees' hairs.Hurley M (2000) Foliage Attributes and Growth Dynamics of Stinging Trees (''Dendrocnide'' spp.) in northern Australian upland tropical rainforest: implications for herbivores. Australian Journal of Botany, 48:191-201. ''Dendrocnide'' stings have been known to kill dogs and horses that have brushed against them. It was found that even heavy welding gloves did not protect researchers from stings while studying the tree.

Uses

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

used the fibres to make nets and lines. Alocasia brisbanensis

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5256738 excelsa Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Rosales of Australia Trees of Australia