Boab facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Boab |
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| Adansonia gregorii, the boab | |
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Adansonia
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gregorii
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Adansonia gregorii, commonly known as the boab, is a very unique tree. It belongs to the Malvaceae family, which also includes plants like cotton and hibiscus. You can easily spot a boab because its trunk is super wide and looks like a big bottle! That's why some people call it the "bottle tree."
Boabs are special because they only grow naturally in Australia. This means they are endemic to Australia. They are mostly found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. You can also find them in parts of the Northern Territory, western Queensland, and New South Wales.
What Makes Boab Trees Special?
Boab trees usually grow between 9 and 12 metres (about 30 to 40 feet) tall. Some can be as short as 5 metres or as tall as 15 metres. Their most amazing feature is their broad, bottle-shaped trunk. Some boab trunks have been measured at over five metres (more than 16 feet) across!
These trees are deciduous, which means they lose their leaves. They drop their leaves during the dry winter season. New leaves and large white flowers start to grow between December and May. This is usually when the wet season begins.
Boab Relatives Around the World
While the boab is unique to Australia, it has relatives in other parts of the world. There are other types of baobab trees. Six different species of baobabs grow naturally in Madagascar. One other species is found in mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. All baobab trees share that famous swollen trunk.
Images for kids
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A boab tree in Timber Creek, Northern Territory
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Adansonia gregorii in Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) NP, Northern Territory.
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Boab - Katherine River
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Boab tree near Kununurra WA
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A boab tree in the Kimberley, Western Australia in February
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Boab tree sunset near Derby, Western Australia
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See also
In Spanish: Boab para niños
