''Mallotus discolor'' is an Australian

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

tree in the

spurge family Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of a genus in the family. Most spurges, such as ''Euphorbia paralias'', are herbs, but some, e ...

. It is known as the yellow kamala, due to the yellowish orange fruit covering, which produces a yellow dye.

Description

It is a small to medium-sized tree, often around tall. However, at Andrew Johnston Big Scrub Nature Reserve near Lismore, there is a yellow kamala with a trunk. Another tree grows at

Susan Island Nature Reserve The Susan Island Nature Reserve is a protected reserve nature reserve located at the western (upstream) end of the 90ha Susan Island, a 3km long x 420m wide river island, that is located in the Clarence River, in the Northern Rivers region ...

; that individual has an trunk.* The natural range of distribution is from just west of

Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour is a city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 as per 2021 census. The Gumbaynggirr ...

(30° S) in northern

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Bowen, Queensland Bowen is a coastal town and locality in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Bowen had a population of 10,377 people. The locality contains two other towns: * Heronvale () * Merinda (). The Abbot Point coal s ...

(20° S). The trunk is not buttressed. The bark on older trees may have some cracks and scales. Generally fairly smooth. Small branches are slender, green or brown with reddish hairy growth towards the end. Leaves feature long stems, variable in length but usually between 4 and 10 cm. Leaves alternate on the stem, without leaf teeth,

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

or ovate in shape with a long tip. The leaves are fairly thin, 4 to 10 cm long. The underside is greyish, the upper surface green, almost hairless. Hence the species name ''discolor'', meaning two colours.

Flowers, fruit and regeneration

Grey flowers form in November on

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

s, 7 to 10 cm long. The fruit matures in January, being a moist capsule with a yellowish orange covering. The capsule is around 6 mm in diameter. The fruit is eaten by the green catbird, Lewin's honeyeater,

grey-headed flying fox The grey-headed flying fox (''Pteropus poliocephalus'') is a megabat native to Australia. The species shares mainland Australia with three other members of the genus ''Pteropus'': the little red ''Pteropus scapulatus, P. scapulatus'', spectacle ...

and others. Regeneration from fresh seed is erratic, cuttings are an alternative method of regeneration.

References

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q6744293 discolor Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Trees of Australia Malpighiales of Australia Plant dyes