450 
89: 485 (1928). Type: Queensland. “Russell’s 
River, Walter Hill”, n.v. 
Illustrations: Cooper & Cooper (2004: 65); 
Hyland et al. (2010). 
Additional selected specimens examined : Queensland. 
Cook District: Palmerston NP, west of Crawford 
Lookout, Jan 1993, Bean 5407 (BRI); Westcott Road, 
Topaz, Mar 2001, Cooper 1522 & Cooper (BRI); trail 
into Stockwellia site near Malanda, Feb 2009, Costion 
1695 (BRI, CNS); Wooroonooran NP, Ghourka Road, 
Mar 2003, Forster P1F29260 & Cooper (BRI, MEL); 
SFR 755, North Johstone LA, Mar 1976, Moriarty 1966 
(BRI, CNS); Bailey’s Creek area, Oct 1963, Smith 11654 
(BRI). 
Distribution and habitat : Polyscias mollis 
is endemic to Queensland, and confined to 
the Wet Tropics bioregion, from Innisfail to 
Cooktown (Map 4), where it grows as an 
understorey species in complex notophyll 
rainforest in high rainfall areas. 
Notes : Polyscias mollis is unique among 
Australian Polyscias species by virtue of its 
prickly stems. The leaf rachis is sometimes 
prickly as well. The tiny marginal teeth on the 
leaflets are also diagnostic. The typical form 
has numerous short erect hairs on the leaflets, 
rachises and inflorescences. A glabrous form 
that was described at species rank ( Panax 
macdowallii F.Muell.), is apparently common, 
and perhaps as widely distributed as the 
typical form. Govaerts et al. (2014) accepted 
Polyscias macdowallii as a distinct species, 
but apart from the indumentum, it does not 
differ in any consistent way from P. mollis 
sens str. 
Typification: There are six sheets at MEL of 
Polyscias mollis material that were collected 
by Dallachy from Rockingham Bay. MEL 
2249865 is here chosen as the lectotype as the 
material on the sheet is a good match for the 
protologue, and the corner of the label has a 
“B” indicating that it was seen by Bentham 
for Flora Australiensis. One of the sheets 
(MEL 2249857) was certainly not seen by 
Bentham as its label includes information 
about the prickly stems possessed by the 
species, and that information is missing from 
the protologue; another sheet (MEL 2249859) 
is probably not original material as it bears 
mature fruits, and the protologue stated that 
Austrobaileya 9(3): 445-456 (2015) 
fruits were “not seen quite ripe”; another 
sheet (MEL 2271939) bearing only leaflets, is 
perhaps a part of the same gathering as MEL 
2249857, and if so, it is not original material. 
The type of Panax macdowallii is not 
present at MEL, where one would expect 
it to be (W. Gebert pers. comm. Sep 2014). 
Bailey (1888) cited Mueller as saying that 
he had recently received “further specimens 
collected by Mr Sayer” soon after his original 
naming. There are numerous Araliaceae 
specimens at MEL collected by Sayer, but 
the only one matching the protologue (i.e. 
having 2 styles and pinnate leaves) is MEL 
2249860. This scrappy specimen is quite 
glabrous, and some prickles are present on 
the very short section of stem that has been 
preserved, and the leaflets have tiny marginal 
teeth, confirming it as the glabrous form of 
P. mollis. Since Mueller considered the Sayer 
specimen to be the same taxon as his Panax 
macdowallii , it follows that P. macdowallii is 
the glabrous form of P. mollis. 
6. Polyscias murrayi (F.Muell.) Harms, 
Natur. Pflanzen. Ill, 8 (111): 45 (1894); Panax 
murrayi F.Muell., Fragm. 2: 106 (1860); 
Nothopanax murrayi (F.Muell.) Seem., J. 
Bot. 4: 295 (1866); Tieghemopanax murrayi 
(F.Muell.) R.Vig., Bull. Soc. Bot. France 52: 
310 (1905). Type: New South Wales. Near 
Twofold Bay, [September 1860], F. Mueller 
s.n. (lecto: MEL 672694 [here designated]; 
isolecto: BM 000810432; BR 563113; MEL 
672693; MEL 672754). 
Illustrations : Cooper & Cooper (2004: 66); 
Hyland et al. (2010); Nicholson & Nicholson 
(2007b: 48). 
Additional selected specimens examined : Queensland. 
Cook District: MtHaig, Emerald LA, Aug 1976, Stocker 
1527 (BRI). North Kennedy District: Bluewater SF, 
NW of Townsville, Oct 1992, Bean 5071 (BRI, MEL). 
South Kennedy District: 500 m along walking track 
to Mt Dalrymple, Eungella NP, Jul 1995, Wiecek 594 et 
al. (BRI, CANB, MEL, NSW, SYD). Darling Downs 
District: W of Moss Gardens, near Killarney, Mar 2004, 
Bean 21775 (BRI). Moreton District: The Summit, Mt 
Glorious, Mar 1999, Phillips 198 (BRI). 
Distribution and habitat : In Queensland, 
Polyscias murrayi occurs mainly in the south¬ 
east of the state, but with disjunct occurrences 
