''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'' 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 elsew ...

to eastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It occurs from Tathra, New South Wales to

Imbil Imbil is a rural town and locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Imbil had a population of 924 people. Geography Imbil is in the Wide Bay–Burnett district in the Mary River valley, north of the state capital, Brisb ...

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 , established_ ...

, 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 Gondwana ...

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 areas ...

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 The insects of the beetle family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles, and include over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making up one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle ...

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 and the green catbird.

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'' (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