''Microcachrys tetragona'', the creeping pine or creeping strawberry pine, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of dioecious conifer belonging to the podocarp

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(

Podocarpaceae Podocarpaceae is a large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, known in English as podocarps, comprising about 156 species of evergreen trees and shrubs.James E. Eckenwalder. 2009. ''Conifers of the World''. Portland, Oregon: Timber Pr ...

).Christopher N. Page. 1990. "Podocarpaceae" pages 332-346. In: Klaus Kubitzki (general editor); Karl U. Kramer and Peter S. Green (volume editors) ''The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants'' volume I. Springer-Verlag: Berlin;Heidelberg, Germany. It is the sole species of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

''Microcachrys''.James E. Eckenwalder. 2009. ''Conifers of the World''. Timber Press: Portland, OR, USA. . The plant is endemic to western

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, where it is a low shrub growing to 1 m tall at high altitudes. Its leaves are scale-like, arranged (unusually for the Podocarpaceae) in opposite decussate pairs, superficially resembling those of the unrelated ''

Diselma archeri ''Diselma archeri'' (dwarf pine or Cheshunt pine) is a species of plant of the family Cupressaceae and the sole species in the genus ''Diselma''. It is endemic to the alpine regions of Tasmania's southwest and Central Highlands, on the western ...

'' ( Cupressaceae). It shares the common name Creeping pine with several other plants. Females produce tiny, red, edible berries in summer. Microcachrys tetragona coniferous heath

Fossil record and paleoendemism

''Microcachrys'' has been called one of the most spectacular cases of paleoendemism. It is a known relictual plant, being widespread in the past but now having a very restricted distribution. The only extant species today, ''Microcachrys tetragona'', produces a very distinctive pollen grain compared with other members of its family,

, and records of fossil pollen from the genus have been recorded from all over the Southern Hemisphere throughout the Cenozoic, being found in Antarctica, Australia, the now sunken islands of the Ninetyeast Ridge of the Indian Ocean, New Zealand, southern Africa and South America. Ocean drillings in the

Kerguelen Plateau The Kerguelen Plateau (, ), also known as the Kerguelen–Heard Plateau, is an oceanic plateau and a large igneous province (LIP) located on the Antarctic Plate, in the southern Indian Ocean. It is about to the southwest of Australia and is ...

near

Heard Island The Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI) is an Australian external territory comprising a volcanic group of mostly barren Antarctic islands, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. The group's overall size ...

have revealed conifer remains with twigs very similar in appearance to those of ''Microcharys.'' The genus ''Microcachrys'' clearly had a very broad, Gondwanic distribution. But now, the sole surviving species, ''Microcachrys tetragona'', is a shrub restricted to Tasmanian mountain thickets and boulder-fields.Carpenter, Raymond J., et al. "Leaf fossils of the ancient Tasmanian relict Microcachrys (Podocarpaceae) from New Zealand." American Journal of Botany 98.7 (2011): 1164-1172 The fossil record of ''Microcachrys'' is one of many compelling lines of evidence which points to the highly dynamic and changing Southern Hemisphere vegetation through the Cenozoic since the break up of Gondwana.

References

External links

Microcachrys
At

At
The Gymnosperm Database
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q14947387, from2=Q136688 Dioecious plants Flora of Tasmania Endemic flora of Tasmania Monotypic conifer genera Podocarpaceae genera Podocarpaceae