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Araucaria heterophylla
Araucaria heterophylla is a distinctive conifer, a member of the ancient and now disjointly distributed family Araucariaceae. As its vernacular name Norfolk Island Pine implies, the tree is endemic to Norfolk Island, a small island in the Pacific Ocean between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The genus Araucaria occurs across the South Pacific. It is sometimes called a 'star pine', 'triangle tree' or 'living christmas tree', due to its symmetrical shape as a sapling, although it is not a true pine. In its native habitat, this tree may reach 200 feet in height with 15 pound cones. They're not fond of the cold, preferring a more temperate climate.
Along the Urunga river estuary.
I love these iconic trees for very sentimental reasons. Whenever I see them, regardless of where they may be, they remind me of many of my favourite beaches in Sydney and the Central Coast of NSW, particularly Manly, Bilgola, Whale, Palm, Avoca and Terrigal Beaches. These trees are planted along the beach fronts and form (for me) the quintessential Australian beach scene.
Spotted on Jul 26, 2013
Submitted on Aug 8, 2013
2 Comments
Thanks, Daniele. I used to climb these as a kid.... and fell out of them a couple of times too. Being thick-headed has its advantages I guess :-)
I love these too Neil! Totally iconic. Nice series.