''Melicope rubra'', commonly known as the little evodia, is a species of small tree in the family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae is a family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in BoDD – Botanical Derm ...

, and 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 north-east Queensland. It has

trifoliate 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 ...

leaves and pink

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

flowers arranged on branches below the leaves.

Description

''Melicope rubra'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of with a trunk diameter of about , but forms flowers and fruit as a shrub. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and are trifoliate on a petiole long. The leaflets are egg-shaped, long and wide, the leaflets

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 ...

or 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 ...

up to long. The flowers are bisexual and arranged in panicles long on branches below the leaves. 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 are more or less round to egg-shaped, long and joined at the base. The petals are pink, long and there are four

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s. Flowering occurs from February to June and the fruit consists of up to four follicles long and fused for at least half their length.

Taxonomy

The little evodia was first formally described in 1900 by

Carl Adolf Georg Lauterbach Carl Adolf Georg Lauterbach (21 April 1864 in Breslau – 1 September 1937 in Breslau) was a German explorer and botanist. He studied natural sciences and agriculture at the Universities of Breslau and Heidelberg, obtaining his doctorate at the ...

and

Karl Moritz Schumann Karl Moritz Schumann (17 June 1851 – 22 March 1904) was a German botanist. Schumann was born in Görlitz. He was curator of the Botanisches Museum in Berlin-Dahlem from 1880 until 1894. He also served as the first chairman of the ''Deutsc ...

who gave it the name ''Euodia rubra'' and published the description in Schumann's book, ''Die Flora der Deutschen Schutzgebiete in der Sudsee''. In 2001,

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 ''Melicope rubra'' in the journal ''Allertonia''.

Habitat and distribution

''Melicope rubra'' grows in forests including rainforest forest from sea level to an altitude of . It is found between Shiptons Flat and Cardwell in north-eastern Queensland.

Conservation status

This species is classified 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, from1=Q15392799 rubra Sapindales of Australia Flora of Queensland Plants described in 1900 Taxa named by Carl Adolf Georg Lauterbach Taxa named by Karl Moritz Schumann