Southern limestone mallee facts for kids

The Eucalyptus notactites, also called the southern limestone mallee, is a type of mallee tree. It grows only in the southwest of Western Australia. This plant has smooth, greyish bark and long, thin adult leaves. Its flower buds grow in groups, and the flowers are creamy white. After flowering, it produces fruit that looks like a small, round cup.

What Does It Look Like?

The Southern Limestone Mallee is a type of mallee tree. This means it has many stems growing from a large, woody base called a lignotuber. It usually grows up to 6 m (20 ft) tall.

Its bark is smooth and comes off in strips. It's white and pale grey, and when it peels, you can see new reddish-tan bark underneath. Young plants and new shoots (called coppice regrowth) have dull green leaves. These leaves are broad and round, up to 45 mm (1.8 in) long and 35 mm (1.4 in) wide.

Adult leaves are shiny green on both sides. They are shaped like a spear, about 90–135 mm (3.5–5.3 in) long and 20–40 mm (0.79–1.57 in) wide. They narrow down to a stalk called a petiole, which is about 13–30 mm (0.51–1.18 in) long.

The flower buds grow in groups of eleven to fifteen. They are found where the leaves meet the stem, in an area called a leaf axil. These buds sit on a flat stalk called a peduncle, which is 7–11 mm (0.28–0.43 in) long. Each individual bud is either directly attached (sessile) or has a very short stalk (pedicel) up to 1 mm (0.039 in) long.

When the buds are ready to open, they are yellowish and shaped like a long oval. They are about 10–13 mm (0.39–0.51 in) long and 6–8 mm (0.24–0.31 in) wide. Each bud has a cap called an operculum, which can be cone-shaped or have a small beak.

This mallee mainly flowers from November to January. Its flowers are a creamy white color. After the flowers, the plant produces a woody fruit. This fruit is shaped like half a sphere, sometimes with ribs. It is 6–9 mm (0.24–0.35 in) long and 8–11 mm (0.31–0.43 in) wide. The parts that open to release seeds (called valves) are usually level with the rim of the fruit. These fruits often grow in crowded groups.

How It Got Its Name

The Southern Limestone Mallee was first officially described in 1992. Two botanists, Lawrie Johnson and Ken Hill, gave it the name Eucalyptus goniantha subspecies notactites. They published their description in a science journal called Telopea. The specimens they studied were collected near Mount Melville in 1986.

Later, in 2012, two other botanists, Dean Nicolle and Malcolm French, decided it was unique enough to be its own species. So, they changed its name to E. notactites.

The second part of its scientific name, notactites, comes from two Greek words. Notos means "the south," and aktites means "a watcher." This name refers to the plant growing along the coast, facing the southern ocean. It's like it's "watching" the southern sea.

Where Does It Grow?

The Eucalyptus notactites grows in mallee shrubland. This is a type of bushland where many mallee trees grow close together. You can find it along the coast of Western Australia. Its range stretches from the Flinders Peninsula in Torndirrup National Park all the way to Cape Arid National Park. It also grows on some islands off the coast.

Is It Endangered?

The Government of Western Australia's Department of Parks and Wildlife has looked at the conservation status of this eucalypt. They have classified it as "not threatened." This means that, for now, there are enough of these plants in the wild, and they are not at risk of disappearing.