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Araucaria columnaris

Paina

New Caledonia Pine

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Image:	Tree overview, and cone detail	61KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: New Caledonia Pine, Cook Pine, Norfolk Pine [incorrectly]

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Paina (RR AT MK MT AK TS TW MH RK PK NS), Paina Māori (MG), Pine Tree (PL)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE southern New Caledonia

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent (early 1900s), Naturalised; S.Group - common and widespread; N.Group - uncommon; Land, lowlands

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental leaves

KEY FEATURES: Narrow column-like tree to 50m with tapering crown. BRANCHES lower ones shed and replaced by short shoots. BRANCHLETS slender, ~1cmØ. LEAVES lancelike, to 7x1mm; oval, to 7x5mm, overlapping. CONES terminal, to 8cm long; ovoid, to 12x10cm; overlapping scales, with sharp, drawn-out, strongly-recurved tip (~5mm long).

SIMILAR SPECIES: Foliage confused with Norfolk Pine (Araucaria heterophylla) and Hoop Pine (Araucaria cunninghamii). However, Norfolk Pine is pyramid-like (vs. column-like) and female cone has straight spines (vs recurved spines); and Hoop Pine is dome-like and not tapering (vs. column-like and tapering at top), upper branches arch upwards (vs. not arching), and foliage in dense terminal tufts (vs. not in terminal tufts).

Enlarged Image of 'Araucaria columnaris'

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea: Present
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+++	+++	++	+	P		+		-

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
++	P	P	+	P	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Araucaria columnaris (G.Forster)
SYNONYMS: Araucaria cookii; Araucaria excelsa [mistakenly]; Cupressus columnaris [O]

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; CONIFEROPHYTA; ARAUCARIACEAE

More Information

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
POSITIVE SIGNIFICANCE: Ornamental leaves. Comments: A popular ornamental tree.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Pukapuka: fieldspecimen, 2/2004, rare, G.McCormack with ID as Araucaria columnaris.

References:
p.39 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.98 Hortus 3rd
p.86 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.335 Tropica
p.15 IR Wilder - Flora of Rarotonga
p.386h Whistler - Ethnobotany of the Cook Islands

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zupM04a, zD02, zupD03b

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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