Byron Flora and Fauna Study 1999 - Byron Shire Council

A GREENPRINT FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Ball Nut (Floydia praealta FAMILY PROTEACEAE)
Introduction. Ball Nut is an ornamental rainforest tree, which occurs as isolated trees throughout its range. No Recovery
Plan has been prepared. Detailed species outlines have been prepared (Quinn et al. 1995) (NSW) and Barry and Thomas
(1994) (Queensland). Ball Nut is a host tree for the Pencilled Blue Butterfly.
Conservation status. Ball Nut is listed on Schedule 2 (Vulnerable) of the TSC Act, 1995 and has a ROTAP code of 3VC-
(Briggs and Leigh 1996).
Habit. A tree up to 35 m tall (Floyd 1989).
Flowers. Cream, in short racemes. Flowering January and February (Floyd 1989). No information about pollination is
available.
Fruit. A follicle, woody, brown and globular up to 5 cm diameter. One or two seeds (not edible) are enclosed in a thick
woody shell which does not split open at maturity. Fruit ripe mainly January to June (Floyd 1989). No information about
dispersal is available, but rodents probably move the large fruits. Dispersal is likely to be inefficient as with other largeseeded
species.
Habitat. Floyd (1989) describes Ball Nut as occurring chiefly in riverine and subtropical rainforests. Barry and Thomas
(1994) note that on the basis of surveys at five Queensland sites, Ball Nut seems adaptable to a wide range of environmental
conditions, including alluvial levees at low elevations, footslopes and hillslopes, and steeply sloping tor screeslopes
at moderate elevations. Parent materials were basalt and metasediments. Basalt was also the substrate, where recorded,
for NSW sites (Quinn et al. 1995).
Distribution. From the Clarence River, NSW, to Gympie, Queensland. Recorded in NSW from Ballina; Booyong; Victoria
Park NR; Wilsons Creek; Boatharbour; Lismore; Whian Whian SF; Hayters Hill; Broken Head NR; Limpinwood NR;
Numinbah Creek (Floyd 1989). Additional sites reported by Quinn et al. (1995) are Upper Crystal Creek; Mt Warning;
Wollumbin Creek; Main Arm; Nightcap Range; Terania Creek Road; Johnstons Scrub; Emerys Scrub; Kellin Falls; Brockley;
Maguires Creek; Victoria Park; Lumley Park; Mollys Grass; The Pocket; Tyagarah. The tree at Tyagarah has since been
removed during upgrading of the Pacific Highway. Details of fifteen locations in the study area were compiled, including
one new location found by the authors during the current survey.
Regeneration and horticulture. Floyd (1989) records that Ball Nut germinates readily from fresh seed, while Nicholson
and Nicholson (1991) note that seed viability and germination times are variable, and initial growth can be slow.
Economic and cultural significance. The timber of Ball Nut is reddish and suitable for cabinet work (Floyd 1989).
Otherwise, no particular use or significance is known apart from the aesthetic and ecological values of all native rainforest
species.
Abundance and reservation. Most locations within the Shire are for sites with single or a few trees. This distribution
pattern seems to be general for the species suggesting a very low number of mature trees in total across its range. The
adequacy of reservation of Ball Nut is unknown (Briggs and Leigh 1996). Trees are known in several reserves within the
Shire, but are likely to be present in small numbers only. Hence the Ball Nuts that occur in the study area have particular
significance for the conservation of the species.
Threats and amelioration. Ball Nut appears to be naturally rare throughout much of its reduced range. Its original habitat
has largely been cleared (Barry and Thomas 1994). Weed invasion and edge effects threaten plants in small remnants
(Quinn et al. 1995). The large seeds are poorly dispersed, and unlikely to colonise new habitat where the forest is cleared
and fragmented. While more detailed observation is required, Ball Nut may be a species which will decline slowly as
existing mature trees senesce without active management. Several known trees are in vulnerable roadside situations.
General rehabilitation measures including weed and fire management, and extension of habitat patches will improve the
conservation status of Ball Nut.
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