Whitsunday Island native palm search

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Denise and I decided to go looking for palms on Whitsunday island in the Whitsunday group of island 6 weeks ago. It is the biggest and has the highest peak in the group.

Having sailed around here a lot i have never seen a non developed island with palms on it. The one's that had coconuts on them had been cleared by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife service as not being native (only been in Australia for 300 million years according to the fossil remains )

After looking up some Flora and Fauna records for the group, no palms were listed for Whitsunday island.

It did not seem possible that none existed so we went Exploring. We decided to go to the Eastern side of the island and go into Hill inlet which meanders for some miles inland.

It is very shallow and we had to cross a shallow bar to get in which is dry most of the tide.

Some Catamarans can get in at higher tides and then wait a few weeks to get back out. Great fishing in there.

The only way in was by dingy.

Had to cross many sandbanks on the way upsteam.

Looking for a way across the Bar. A little rest after we crossed the bar before heading upstream

another sandbank to slow us down. Livistona found just as the mangroves start

The water changes colour and hopes rise for a change in vegetation. Is that more palms in the distance

Yes there are!! We found more

to be continued

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

I wanted to go deeper upstream but Denise got a bit worried when the inlet got muddier and more mangroves spikes crazed along the side of the dingy. We were a long way from any help so took a few more pictures and headed back as we had no more water and had been travelling for a few hours and it would take a few more to get back to the boat.

The Livistona were very few and it was disappointing not to have found more species BUT we were happy to find the palms we where told did not exist. It was a great adventure.

I think the species may have been Livistona Drudei but defer to the Queensland brain trust for confirmation.

On the way back a bit shallow. Looking back

Denise steering when in deeper water. Looking for a way back across the bar entrance

We decided we would sail to the other side of the Island to climb Whitsunday peak and hopefully find more species.

arriving at the departure point for the trek. Time for a rest and we begin again tomorrow

Sun setting. Time for a few sundowners

WAIT TILL YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENED ON THE TREK

regards

Colin

[Daryl]

Nice find Colin! They look like L.decora to me.

Daryl

[bgl]

Hi Colin,

Wow, what a spectacular place! Thanks a lot for those great photos, and looking forward to the rest. Oh, and I deleted the duplicate thread - just so you know!

Bo-Göran

[realarch]

Pretty exciting to be able to explore like that. What a beautiful place, the water and the beach look like something out of a travel magazine.

[MattyB]

Good stuff Colin! Can't wait for the trek!

[paulgila]

what a great adventure--and palm-related to boot!

[Walter John]

Fantastic Col, no palms on Whitsundays hey ?, mate you have once again boldly gone in ratpack research style to explore and discover. Those Livistona are flowering like mad too, that's a grand event for Livistona prosperity.

And more to come !

[Texeltropics]

great pictures!! please show us more!!

[Tassie_Troy1971]

You can't beat a nice livistona great pics Colin !

[Pedro 65]

Very Beautiful Pics Colin, looks like a lot of fun, is that whitehaven beach pictured in post 1? You would think there would be lots of Ptychsperma Elegans naturalised or already native to this Island. Look fwd to the rest of your adventurous pics. Pete

[Tropicgardener]

Very Beautiful Pics Colin, looks like a lot of fun, is that whitehaven beach pictured in post 1? You would think there would be lots of Ptychsperma Elegans naturalised or already native to this Island. Look fwd to the rest of your adventurous pics. Pete

Ptychosperma elegans does exist on some of the uninhabitated Whitsunday Islands....I remember seeing some whilst cruising around the islands many years ago.

[palmtreesforpleasure]

We went ashore to start the Whitsunday peak climb

A copy of the a tourist message.

Whitsunday Peak — 5km return (4 hours) Grade: Difficult

Stand at the top of the island and enjoy uninterrupted views of the Whitsundays. Accessed from Sawmill Beach in Cid Harbour, the Whitsunday Peak track offers a great getaway from the busy beaches. Climb through diverse vegetation, from rainforest gullies to windblown heaths, and be rewarded with spectacular vistas on the ‘roof of the Whitsundays’.

Walk safely: Remember, this track is steep and physically demanding — please consider your fitness and walking experience carefully before setting out.

( i am glad we read this after the climb )

We entered the low forest and within 100m we could not believe what we saw in the lowlands, a forest of palms

which looked in the first instance looked only like Ptychosperma elegans. The grove went from about 10m altitude to about 60m in altitude then thinned out quickly at about 80m altitude they stopped.

This was a complete surprise and the P.elegans were very variable.

The beginning of the climb

more next post

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

When we looked walked deeper into the grove there was an Archontophoenix,? very thinned trunk, looked like Tuckerii which is not known this far south.

So i was not sure if they were all P elegans, or something else maybe P elegans just being very variable as most did not have recurved leaves.

I will just post the pictures so people can make suggestions.

As i do not grow all of these possibilities, it was sometimes confusing to identify the species with so much variability in the palms growing there.

Is the last picture a very skinny trunked Archontophoenix alexandrae?

opinions?

More to come

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Before we post more pictures, a map of the climb

cairn-dugong-peak-map.pdf

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QIC5Ie07uU

She makes it look easy, i wish it was.

another pictures before trekking higher

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

About an hour into the climbing trek, at about 200 altitude, we saw a large Archontophoenix alexandrae (saw very few of these on the trek, probably only 10 in Total), also along the climb there were sporadic stands of Ptychosperma elegans all the way up to about 380m altitude. and saw our first Calamus australis but did not see any more until we reached about 300m+ altitude.

A few Staghorns and a native Ginger in the same area

So what else did we find

wait until the next post

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Whoops

should have said bird nest ferns not staghorns

thanks peachy

regards'

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

At about 330m altitude we walked into a forest of Calamus australis, very dense thickets could be seen with a few Ptychosperma elegans pushing upwards towards the light. This forest went up to about 400m and was about 1.5 hours into the trek. Can be a bit of a cloud forest from her up sometimes.

next post , a final push to the summit

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

At Times the Calamus was very dense, another steep climb and we suddenly came into a clearing at 390m altitude which we thought was the top until we realised it was about to get steeper, cruel really!

Another 47m altitude upwards to go, looking forward to a sit down.

Surprised to see in the clearing lots of grass trees

We made it, a sit down at last, hot and sweaty looking forward to a drink and some fruit

next

The view, then the trip down, and another discovery

regards

Colin

[The Germinator]

Great Post Colin, this is why we come to Palm Talk I love it. The palm you questioned had ovoid seeds so it has to be Ptyco, i would think. You are right the trunks are too slender for any Archies I have ever seen.

[chakoro]

Hi Colin,Wow on the edge of my seat here mate can`t wait for the next installment!Hiking and palm spotting in the tropics what more could you want?Thanks for sharing Craig.

[Ken Johnson]

This is the best post in a long time! Thank you Collin! Breathtaking and fun, boats, hikes, surprises...who could ask for anything more!

[sur4z]

Great post...sun, sand, sea, adventure...how can it get better!!

[Gtlevine]

That was a great post, well put together, plenty of anticipation, and great conclusion. I give you an A+ for your report. I love the grass tree's you found at the top also, those are a species of xanthorrhoea I assume? do you know which species?

Thanks for posting,

Gary

[Stevetoad]

i love seeing palms in there habitat!!! thanks for posting...

[John in Andalucia]

Hi Colin,

You lucky so-and-so! Really, a great topic. I imagine your nautical experience is priceless in exploring such places. A real adventure!

[chris.oz]

Great story Colin. Enjoyed each discovery in the dialog.

October FNQ. Just starting to get nicely hot; always good to get up to a higher altitude

for a bit of relief

[Walter John]

May your recovery be swift Col, all the previous posters say it all, a bloody great thread, no, more than that, a legendary thread, hope to see you sometime soon. Denise, you look bloody great too.

Hang on, there's more isn't there ? "The view, then the trip down, and another discovery", I/we can wait...

Yes, the last pic in post #14 has to be an Archontophoenix.

[Kim]

Three of my favorite things, the ocean, hiking, and palms in habitat! Looking forward to the next installment. Any thoughts on why the palms are so skinny?

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Now we had time to enjoy the view before heading back down

The first picture is a long distance shot of the beach where Hill inlet is on the other side of the island where the story began, it is the other end of the world renown Whitehaven beach, known for its pure white sand.

and now the rest of the view.

next, the find on the way down

regards

Colin

[palmtreesforpleasure]

We descended about half way down , walked across a dry creek bed and up the other side.

about 100m along i looked to my left and then i saw them, confirmation at last, old , tall, Archontophoenix alexandrae.

Up until now i was not sure they grew here. The earlier pictures taken of the other one in the forest was so far away it was hard to tell and had to use a zoom setting on the camera to capture the picture.

The other slim trunk specimens seen maybe an unnamed variation, would have to leave that deliberation up to a botanist.

Now for the real thing, the right base

Now the rest of the pictures

BUT Wait, have you noticed anything Yet??

the answer, maybe not, next post

regards

Colin

[peachy]

Great photos Colin, so good to see the whitsundays au naturale. And aren't you a wonderful old sausage, climbing those big hills at your age Thanks for all the effort.

Peachy

PS Make sure you get my boat cleaned out properly before you bring it back.

[Walter John]

BUT Wait, have you noticed anything Yet??

the answer, maybe not, next post

regards

Colin

Two things Col

1. 
   
   
2. There's no silver on the underside of the leaves
   
3. There's a nest of redback spiders in the dead fallen leaf on the left in the second last pic.

[richnorm]

Great stuff, many thanks, roll on summer downunder.

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Well Done Wal

You are right, no silver on the underside of the leaves, so what Archontophoenix can it be?? I did not notce that until preparing post 31.

The only one that has green underneath on the leaves is Archontophoenix cunninghamiana, wrong crownshaft to be that.

Now to review

Saw Archontophoenix that looked like species tuckeri, saw species alexandrae, saw the unknown one above. Is it a new species??

Need to go back there with some people more skilled than I in identifying what they are or confirming they are something new. Now that would be exciting!!!!

Now about the Redback spider nest, i completely missed it as i was looking up at the crownshaft.

I did not see it at all and moved the dead leaves to take the top picture in post 31

Was very lucky not to get bitten, good lesson learnt, thanks Wal.

NOTE

The palm forest seen when we first entered the walk is all in regrowth forest, as this area was a sawmill area for the hoop pine that was cut down in the early Queensland settlement days.

After a 5 hour adventure we arrived back to the beach late in the afternoon. now to pull in the dingy and go back to the boat for well earned sundowners

hope you enjoyed the story of discovery

regards

Colin

[richnorm]

Love the somewhat short, broad, overlapping leaflets. Shame it's not seed season!

[Walter John]

Here's a map folks. Do A.cunninghamiana live this far north ?

[Tropicgardener]

Here's a map folks. Do A.cunninghamiana live this far north ?

Very interesting to see what Archontophoenix it is.......as far as I was aware A. cunninghamiana in its northern range was restricted to the upland rainforests around Eungella. Even around here A.cunninghamiana is absent and you will only find A.alexandrae in the lowland coastal areas. Some forms of A.alexandrae do have very light (almost absent) glaucous colouring on the their underleaves.

[Daryl]

Archontophoenix wilsonii?

[Walter John]

What about a close-up of those flowers Col, they look white to me, a form of Alex as Andrew surmises perhaps .