Barry Conn (NSW) & Kipiro Damas (LAE).
Copyright held by the authors, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, and Papua New Guinea National Herbarium

Saurauia conferta Warb.

Botanische Jahrbucher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie Vol. 13: 379 (1891)

Field Characters: Small trees 5-8 m high. Bole cylindrical 6-8 cm diam.; straight; buttresses absent; spines absent; aerial roots absent; stilt roots absent. Bark brown, smooth or slightly rough, slightly pustular; lenticels elongated vertically often not distinct; subrhytidome yellow or green; bark thickness <25 mm thick, 3.0 mm thick; blaze consisting of one layer; faintly to non-aromatic; unpleasant; outer blaze pale yellow cream-coloured or white, markings absent, fibrous; inner blaze white or pale yellow cream-coloured, markings absent, fibrous; exudate present, colourless, spotty, changing colour on exposure to air, to dark orange, slightly sticky. Terminal buds not enclosed by leaves; complex hairs absent; stinging hairs absent.

Leaves: Spaced along branches <internodes readily visible>. Leaves spiral, simple; petiole present 25 mm long, not winged, attached to base of leaf blade <not peltate>, not swollen; lamina broadest above middle, 24.0-26.0 cm long, 8.0-11.0 cm wide; lamina symmetric, margin serrate to dentate (toothed), not dissected or lobed, apex acuminate, venation pinnate <secondary veins arising from the midrib along its length>, secondary veins open <spaced far apart to easily see tertiary veins>, prominent, intramarginal veins absent; lower surface pale green, upper surface dark green, hairs present, sparse; oil dots absent; domatia absent; stipules absent.

Flowers: Inflorescence axillary <from between a leaf and branch>. Flowers on an unbranched axis (by misinterpretation) or flowers on a branched axis condensed; inflorescence with gelatinous exudate; flowers unisexual, with male and female flowers on the same plant <monoecious>, flowers stalked pedicel 70 mm long, with many planes of symmetry <actinomorphic>, 40.0-45.0 mm long, large (>10 mm diam.) 50 mm diam.; perianth present, with distinct sepals and petals, white; inner perianth 5, free or some or partly joined at base; stamens 100 (yellow-orange), filaments present, joined <connate>, joined to perianth <epipetalous/episepalous> ovary inferior <seated below the petals and sepals; epigenous>, carpels joined (when more than one) <syncarpous>, locules 5; styles free <more than one style, entirely free from each other>, 5.

Fruits: Fruits arranged on branched axis condensed or fruits arranged on unbranched axis (by misinterpretation). Indehiscent.

Distribution: Eastern Highlands.

Botanical records in PNGplants database Map details

Notes: Previously included in the Family Saurauiaceae.