Litsea reticulata is a common Australian tree, growing from near Milton, New South Wales

Milton, New South Wales

Milton is a town in the City of Shoalhaven on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia, not far from Ulladulla. It was founded in the middle of the 19th century...

 to the Bunya Mountains

Bunya Mountains

The Bunya Mountains are a distinctive set of peaks forming an isolated section of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland. The mountain range forms the northern edge of the Darling Downs near Bell and Dalby. The mountains are south of Kingaroy and just to the south west of Nanango...

, Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

. Common names include Bollygum, Bolly Wood and Brown Beech. The habitat of the Bollygum is rainforest

Rainforest

Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...

 of most types, except the dryer forms.

Taxonomy

Litsea reticulata was first described by Meisner in 1864 as Tetranthera reticulata, before being given its current name by von Mueller in 1882. Common names include Bolly Gum, Bolly Beech, Brown Beech, Brown Bolly Beech, Sycamore, Brown Bollywood, Soft Bollygum, and Brown Bollygum.

Description

Litsea reticulata is a medium to large size tree, occasionally reaching 40 metres in height and a 150 cm in trunk diameter.

The bark is a grey, brown and scaly, with numerous depressions caused by the shedding of round scales of bark, colloquially known as "bollies". Exposed bark is a paler colour, giving the trunk a patchy appearance. Litsea reticulata are slightly buttressed or flanged at the base.

Leaves, flowers and fruit

The leaves are alternate, not toothed. 5 to 10 cm long, blunt or slightly pointed, the leaves are veiny underneath. Leaf stalks are 5 to 12 mm long.

Litsea reticulata is dioecious

Dioecious

Dioecy is the property of a group of biological organisms that have males and females, but not members that have organs of both sexes at the same time. I.e., those whose individual members can usually produce only one type of gamete; each individual organism is thus distinctly female or male...

 (male and female flowers are on separate trees). Flowers cream or green with pink. Flowering period is May to July.

The fruit matures from November to April, being a purple/black 14 mm long drupe

Drupe

In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...

, in a green cup shaped receptacle, with a single seed, 11 mm long.

Seed germination can be slow. However, at other times, 60% germination result can be achieved within a month of sowing. The flesh should be removed from the fruit before sowing the seeds.

Fruit are eaten by many rainforest birds, including the Wompoo Fruit Dove, Catbird

Catbird

Several unrelated groups of songbirds are called catbirds because of their wailing calls, which resemble a cat's meowing. The genus name Ailuroedus likewise is from the Greek for "cat-singer" or "cat-voiced"....

, Topknot Pigeon

Topknot Pigeon

The Topknot Pigeon is a pigeon native to Australia. It is also known by the name of "Flock Pigeon".-Description:...

 and White-headed Pigeon

White-headed Pigeon

The White-headed Pigeon is a pigeon native to the east coast of Australia, belonging to the same genus as the domestic pigeon C. livia....

.