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Myrtle Beech, Nothofagus cunninghamii
Thie myrtle beech is a wet rain forest species from Tasmania and Victoria on the southern tip of Australia.
It is part of the ancient Gondwanaland fauna and fossil plants are found on the continent of what is now Antarctica. It still exists in South America and southern Australia. This example of biogeograpy is an excellent demonstration of continental drift and biological evolution in case anyone is still wondering.
Here an image of the extant genus (Nothogagus dombeyi) in Chile
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nothofagus#/media/File:Nothofagus_Distribution.svg
Myrtle beech is a large, spreading evergreen tree up to 40 m tall with a stem diameter
between 150 and 250 cm in favourable environments, but is often a dense understorey
shrub 6–18 m high in wet eucalypt forest and at higher altitudes. The trunk is slightly
buttressed, fluted and often swollen at the base, with adventitious shoots. The outer
bark is brown or deep red to pink, scaly and slightly fibrous and remains attached to
the tree for life.
Myrtle beech has attractive.. more
