Podocarpaceae

Prumnopitys andina (Poepp. ex Endl.) de Laub.

Endemic to Chile where it has a restricted distribution and is threatened by hydro-electric schemes, grazing and afforestation

Description

Habit

Evergreen tree to 15m tall, crown broadly pyramidal or rounded; trunk smooth, 0.5-1m in diameter, bark grey. Branches verticillate or almost so, densely covered by leaves.

Foliage

Leaves 1-2.5 x 0.15-0.2cm, simple, alternate, almost sessile, linear, slightly falcate, usually dull bluish green, 2 whitish stomatal bands below, with a short mucron at the apex.

Cones

Male-cones in spikes, each subtended by a linear-lanceolate bract.; female-cones a plum-like fruit, 2-3cm long, yellow when ripe, sweet-tasting; flowers in november. Seed ovoid; fruits mature from january to march.

Distribution

Endemic to Chile where its main distribution is in the Andes from Región VII (Province Linares, 35º 52’) to Región IX (Province Malleco, 39º 30’S). It also has a single location on the eastern slopes of the Coastal Cordillera in Región IX and one location in the Central Depression Región IX (Province Malleco, 38º 20’S) (Hechenleitner et al. 2005). mature individuals. Notable locations include: Andes: (i) Región VII [Maule]; Valle de Maule. (ii) Región VIII [Biobío]; Fundo Los Ciervos. (iii) Alto Biobío. iv) San Fabián de Alico. (v) Termas de Chillán. (vi) Región IX [Araucanía]; Parque Nacional Conguillío; Coastal Cordillera: (vii) Región IX [Araucanía]; Los Alpes. Central Depression: (viii) Región IX [Araucanía]; 3 km from Pua.

Prior to 1998, standard references for the flora of Chile considered P. andina to be endemic to Chile (Rodríguez 1983,{ref11} Marticorena & Rodríguez, 1995).{ref7}Covas, (1998){ref2} cited P. andina as having an Argentinean distribution based on a herbarium specimen collected in 1936 by Cabrera (no. 3675) apparently from near the Río Aluminé in Prov. Neuquén. However, recently this specimen has been re–examined at the La Plata Herbarium, Argentina, only to find that the location label details relate to Ñuble, Recinto, which is located in Chile. Tortorelli (1956){ref13} lists P. andina as occurring in Cañadón Regolil (Prov. Neuquén), Argentina, which is very close to the Chilean border. Local botanists and foresters have not been able to confirm the occurrence P. andina at this location, saying that the conifer Saxegothaea conspicua, which is not uncommon in the area, is often mistaken for P. andina.

Habitat and Ecology

In the Chilean Andes it is restricted to the bottom of valleys close to large rivers where it is often associated with Austrocedrus chilensis, Cryptocarya alba, Quillaja saponaria and other trees and shrubs which form part of the sclerophyllous vegetation. In the Coastal Cordillera it is associated with a remnant forest that was once dominated by Nothofagus dombeyi and N. nervosa (Hechenleitner et al. 2005).{ref6} It is a dioecous species and the embryos at 'fruit–fall' are immature and need a period of after-development which may take up to four years (Gosling et al. 2005).{ref5}

Human Uses

Although the wood is of value and was traditionally been used for house building, there is little evidence that the wood is widely used today.