''Eucalyptus shirleyi'', commonly known as Shirley's silver leafed ironbark, silver-leaved ironbark, or Shirley's silver leaved ironbark, is a species of small

ironbark Ironbark is a common name of a number of species in three taxonomic groups within the genus ''Eucalyptus'' that have dark, deeply furrowed bark. Instead of being shed annually as in many of the other species of ''Eucalyptus'', the dead bark accu ...

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 rough ironbark on the trunk and larger branches, the thinnest branches

glaucous ''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), g ...

, a

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

composed of

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, heart-shaped, egg-shaped or round juvenile leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and cup-shaped to barrel-shaped fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus shirleyi'' is small tree, often of mallee form and with a crooked trunk, that typically grows to a height of and forms a

lignotuber A lignotuber is a woody swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem, such as by fire. Other woody plants may develop basal burls as a similar survival strategy, often as a response t ...

. It has rough, dark grey to black, deeply fissured ironbark on the trunk and larger branches, usually glaucous branchlets. The crown of the tree is usually composed of juvenile leaves that are sessile, arranged in opposite pairs, heart-shaped to egg-shaped or round with their bases stem-clasping. The leaves are the same shade of dull bluish green on both sides, long and wide. The flower buds are arranged on the ends of branchlets in groups of seven on a branched peduncle long, the individual buds on

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

long. Mature buds are oval, long and wide and glaucous, often ribbed with a conical to rounded operculum. Flowering occurs between March and May and the flowers are white or pale creamy yellow. The fruit is a woody cup-shaped to barrel-shaped capsule long, wide and usually ribbed with the valves near rim level or below.

Taxonomy

''Eucalyptus shirleyi'' was first formally described by the botanist

Joseph Maiden Joseph Henry Maiden (25 April 1859 – 16 November 1925) was a botanist who made a major contribution to knowledge of the Australian flora, especially the genus ''Eucalyptus''. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation when citing ...

in 1923 in his book ''A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus'', from specimens collected from the Stannary Hills in North Queensland. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

honours John Shirley, an educationist and scientist, who also served on the council of the

Royal Society of Queensland The Royal Society of Queensland was formed in Queensland, Australia in 1884 from the Queensland Philosophical Society, Queensland's oldest scientific institution, with royal patronage granted in 1885. The aim of the Society is "Progressing scie ...

for 33 years and was twice its President.

Distribution

Shirley's silver leafed ironbark is found in north and central Queensland from

Mount Mulligan Mount Mulligan is a former mining town and now a rural locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the Mount Mulligan had a population of 4 people. It is the site of the Mount Mulligan mine disaster, Queensland's worst mining ...

south through the

Ravenshoe Ravenshoe ( ) is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Ravenshoe had a population of 1,400 people. Geography Ravenshoe is on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland. It is located south w ...

and

Herberton Herberton is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Herberton had a population of 855 people. Geography Herberton is on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland. It is situa ...

areas to near

St Lawrence Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman ...

. It grows in woodland and forest in a wide range of soils.

Conservation status

This eucalyptus is classified as "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=Q3059462 Trees of Australia shirleyi Myrtales of Australia Flora of Queensland Plants described in 1923

Description

Taxonomy

Distribution

Conservation status

See also

References