Ridge-top mallet facts for kids

The Eucalyptus singularis is a special type of eucalyptus tree that grows only in Western Australia. It's known for its smooth bark, though sometimes it has rough strips near the bottom. This tree has long, narrow adult leaves, and its flower buds usually grow in groups of seven. When it blooms, you'll see pale yellow flowers, and later, it produces fruit that looks like a small cylinder or barrel.

What Does It Look Like?

The Eucalyptus singularis is a type of mallet tree. It usually grows to about 6 meters (about 20 feet) tall. Unlike some other eucalyptus trees, it does not form a lignotuber. A lignotuber is a woody swelling at the base of the stem that helps the plant regrow after a fire.

This tree has smooth, greyish bark. Sometimes, you might see rough, grey to brown strips of bark near the bottom of the trunk.

Leaves and Flowers

When the Eucalyptus singularis is young, its leaves are a dull, bluish-green color. They are shaped like an oval or an egg, measuring between 40 to 100 millimeters (about 1.5 to 4 inches) long and 20 to 50 millimeters (about 0.8 to 2 inches) wide.

As the tree gets older, its leaves change. Adult leaves are shiny green on both sides and are shaped like a spear or a narrow spear. They are 55 to 130 millimeters (about 2 to 5 inches) long and 6 to 20 millimeters (about 0.2 to 0.8 inches) wide. These leaves narrow down to a stalk called a petiole, which is 8 to 20 millimeters (about 0.3 to 0.8 inches) long.

The flower buds usually grow in groups of seven. They are found where the leaves meet the stem, on a thin, unbranched stalk called a peduncle, which is 15 to 30 millimeters (about 0.6 to 1.2 inches) long. Each individual bud sits on a smaller stalk called a pedicel, about 5 to 10 millimeters (about 0.2 to 0.4 inches) long.

Mature buds are mostly cylindrical, measuring 15 to 25 millimeters (about 0.6 to 1 inch) long and 5 to 6 millimeters (about 0.2 inches) wide. They have a beak-shaped cap called an operculum.

Flowering and Fruit

The Eucalyptus singularis blooms in November and December. Its flowers are a pale yellow color. After flowering, the tree produces a woody fruit. This fruit is a capsule that looks like a cylinder or a barrel. It is 10 to 15 millimeters (about 0.4 to 0.6 inches) long and 8 to 14 millimeters (about 0.3 to 0.5 inches) wide. The parts that open to release the seeds are almost level with the rim of the fruit.

How It Got Its Name

The Eucalyptus singularis was officially described for the first time in 2001. This was done by two scientists, Lawrie Johnson and Donald Blaxell. They studied a sample of the tree that was collected north of Ravensthorpe in 1984.

The second part of its scientific name, singularis, comes from a Latin word. It means "alone" or "solitary." This name was chosen because this species grows differently compared to other trees in its group, the E. incrassata group.

Where Does It Grow?

This mallet tree grows in areas with shallow sand over a type of rock called laterite. You can find it north-west of Ravensthorpe, stretching towards Lake Magenta, Dragon Rocks, and Dumbleyung. These areas are part of the Esperance Plains and Mallee biogeographic regions in Western Australia.

Is It Endangered?

The Western Australian Government's Department of Parks and Wildlife has looked at the Eucalyptus singularis. They have classified this eucalypt as "not threatened." This means that there are enough of these trees in the wild, and they are not currently at risk of disappearing.