506 
Telopea 8(4): 2000 
1.5-2 times longer than hypanthium, inflated conical, shortly and broadly rostrate. 
Stamens all fertile, filaments erect in bud, anthers oblong, dorsifixed, versatile, 
dehiscing by parallel slits. Fruits cup shaped, 3- rarely 4-5-locular, 7-11 mm long, 7-11 mm 
diam.; hypanthium smooth; calyptra scar and stemonophore broad, raised; disc 
depressed; valves vertically exserted, triangular, apiculate. 
Previously confused with and included in E. pellita, which we now regard as an 
Australian endemic restricted to the Cairns region. £. biterranea is distinguished from 
£. pellita by the smaller buds, fruits and leaves (Table 2). It is the only species in section 
Transversaria occurring in New Guinea, readily distinguished from other eucalypt 
species in the region by the strongly discolorous leaves with closely parallel pinnate 
venation, and the fruits with prominently exserted valves. This is the taxon referred to 
as species A by Pryor et al. (1995), who also discuss diagnostic features of the 
Indonesian and Timorese taxa. It is distinguished from £. orophila and £. ivetarensis by 
the calyptra more than 1.5 times the length of hypanthium in bud (about equal in the 
other species), and from £. urophylla by the broad fruits, about as long as wide (fruits 
are longer than wide in £. urophi/lla). 
Table 2. A comparison of the tropical Australian red mahogany species 
leaves, I x b mm 
petiole mm 
peduncles mm 
pedicels mm 
buds, I x b mm 
fruits, I x b mm 
E. biterranea 
70-200 x 20-50 
12-35 
9-18 
4-12 
14-18x7-9 
7-11x7-11 
E. pellita 
110-200x35-75 
18-25 
15-25 
5-10 
13-16x7-10 
10-13x9-18 
E. macta 
70-180x12-35 
15-25 
5-25 
3-12 
14-21 x 6-8 
7-10x7-10 
E. resinifera 
90-220 x 20-45 
15-30 
9-20 
4-10 
14-20 x 5-6 
6-10x6-9 
istribution: sporadic in distribution, through the Macllwraith and Iron ranges and 
northwards in Australia, the southern margin of the Oriomo Plateau in the Western 
Province of Papua New Guinea, and the south-east of the Merauke region in Irian Jaya 
(Fig- 1)- 
Ecology: usually a tree of rainforest margins. 
Conservation status: not considered to be at risk. 
Etymology: from the Latin bi-, two, and terra, a land or region, in reference to the 
species occurrence in both far north Queensland and the island of New Guinea (Papua 
New Guinea and Irian Jaya). 
w!r!vcur K '7 nS (fr0m 15 examined): Australia: Queensland: Cape Flattery, Bean 469, 24 June 
nrrL c r km W ° f Barrow Point, Cape York Peninsula, Cape Melville National Park, Fell 
innc tlcunt" 21 JU ’ y 1993 ( BRI ' CANB, NSW); Mcllwraith Range, Hyland 7659, 22 Sep 1974 
(C ,NSV\ " T R ' 14 ' Mdlwraith Range, Leo Ck road, Hyland 8411, 22 Sep 1975 (QRS, NSW); Tozers 
Gap, Irvine 227, 30 June 1972 (QRS, NSW). 
G . uinea: Westem Province: Approx. 6 km S of Keru on road to Mata, Gunn 838,22 Sep 
tNSW); Approx. 1.2 km S of Kumbalusi to(wards) Mata, Gunn 849, 850, 22 Sep 1987 (NSW); 
QM/ P Tr : 2 °rr eS North ofTokwa on road to Kiriwo, Sirisa, Gunn 865, 871, 29 Sep 1987 (NSW); 
bw ot Coe (half a days walk or about 9 km), 12 km N of Kiriwo, Gunn 882, 885, 1 Oct 1987 (NSW); 
new track to mining camp S of Maru, McDonald 837, 23 Oct 1988 (CANB, NSW). 
Indonesia: Irian Jaya: Merauke: Djidjurug, Long BW569 (NSW). 
