Eucalyptus arcana

Eucalyptus arcana, commonly known as the Mallee manna gum or Carpenter Rocks gum^[1] is a mallee that is native to the south coast of South Australia.

The single or several-stemmed low straggly tree typically grows to 6 metres (20 ft) in height and has rough, fibrous, grey to grey-brown bark from the trunk to smaller branches, and smooth, grey to cream bark above. Adult leaves are a glossy green with a blade that is 120 millimetres (4.7 in) long and 35 mm (1.4 in) wide with a lanceolate shape.^[2] It blooms in February producing axillary flowers in clusters of seven with very short or lacking individual stalks then buds that are 7.5 mm (0.30 in) long and 5.5 mm (0.22 in) wide with an egg-shape and a bud-cap cone-shaped equal to the base. It will later fruit forming rounded to cone-shaped 7 mm (0.28 in) long and 8 mm (0.31 in) wide fruit containing dark brown to black ovoid seeds.^[2]

The species is rare and has a limited range and occurs on low rises in shallow red clay-loam impoverished soils over limestone around the coastal town of Carpenter Rocks in south-east South Australia.^[3] It is found amongst dense tall shrubland,^[2] associated species include Eucalyptus obliqua and Eucalyptus ovata.^[3] Another population occurs along the soat coast of Victoria near Moonlight Head.

Initially known as Eucalyptus splendens subsp. arcana which was described by the botanists D.Nicolle & Brooker in 1998 the species was renamed to E. arcana by K.Rule in 2009.^[4][3]

See also

• List of Eucalyptus species

References