Byron Flora and Fauna Study 1999 - Byron Shire Council

A GREENPRINT FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Small-leaved Hazelwood (Symplocos baeuerlenii FAMILY SYMPLOCAEAE)
Introduction. Small-leaved Hazelwood is a small rainforest tree found in warm temperate rainforests mostly in the
Shire’s higher altitude National Parks and State Forests. No Recovery Plan has been prepared. A detailed species outline
has been prepared (Quinn et al. 1995).
Conservation status. Small-leaved Hazelwood is listed on Schedule 2 (Vulnerable) of the TSC Act, 1995 and has a
ROTAP code of 2VC- (Briggs and Leigh 1996).
Habit. A tall shrub or rarely a small tree up to 7 m (Floyd 1989).
Flowers. Cream, in axillary clusters or on a short raceme. Flowering June to September (Floyd 1989).
Fruit. Drupe, red, oval, 8 - 10 mm long. Ripe January to February. Single seeds 6 mm long (Floyd 1989). No information
about dispersers is available but frugivorous birds are likely to eat the fruit.
Habitat. Floyd (1989) describes Small-leaved Hazelwood as restricted to the less fertile soils derived from rhyolite in
warm-temperate rainforest.
Distribution. Recorded only from Mt Matheson and Terania Creek, Nightcap NP; Gibberagunyah Range and Lost Valley,
Whian Whian SF; Boomerang Falls FR; Jerusalem Mt and Blackbutt Plateau, Mt Jerusalem NP; Upper Main Arm;
Numinbah NR; Hogans Scrub, North Tumbulgum and Natural Bridge, Queensland (Floyd 1989). Additional reserved
populations occur at Mt Warning NP (Briggs and Leigh 1996), with a recent record from Goonengerry NP (H. Bower
pers. comm.).
Regeneration and horticulture. Floyd (1989) recommends propagation from fresh seed or perhaps from cuttings. Smallleaved
Hazelwood is little known in horticulture, but the Big Scrub Rainforest Landcare Group (1998a) recommends its
planting into partially shaded positions.
Economic and cultural significance. Small-leaved Hazelwood has the aesthetic and ecological values of all native rainforest
trees.
Abundance and reservation. Small-leaved Hazelwood is locally common but has a restricted distribution. Briggs and
Leigh (1996) regard the extent of its reservation as inadequately known. The Shire’s populations are mostly included in
National Parks and State Forests, but the authors recorded a new location in the study area at Koonyum Range.
Threats and amelioration. Logging and clearing of habitat (Quinn et al. 1995). Weeds, fire and roading are also threats.
Appropriate management of fire and weeds on public lands and protection in State Forests is required.
186