Agathis australis

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(Redirected from Kauri)

{{Taxobox | color = lightgreen | name = Agathis australis | status = Conservation status: Secure | image = Kauri Te Matua Ngahere.jpg | image_width = 200px | image_caption = Agathis australis tree 'Te Matua Ngahere' | regnum = Plantae | divisio = Pinophyta | classis = Pinopsida | ordo = Pinales | familia = Araucariaceae | genus = Agathis | species = A. australis | binomial = Agathis australis | binomial_authority = (D.Don) Loudon }}

Agathis australis (Kauri) is a coniferous tree native to the northern North Island of New Zealand. Kauri trees grow straight and tall to 40-50 m tall, with smooth bark and small oval leaves. Heavily logged in the past, Kauri are much less common than in pre-European times.

Image:Young kauri leaves.jpg The leaves are 3-7 cm long and 1 cm broad, tough and leathery in texture, with no midrib; they are arranged in opposite pairs or whorls of three on the stem. The seed cones are globose, 5-7 cm diameter, and mature in 18-20 months after pollination; they disintegrate at maturity to release the seeds. The male (pollen) cones are cylindrical, 2-4 cm long and 1 cm thick.

Kauri are predominantly found in the northern half of the North Island. The most famous are the Tane Mahuta and Te Matua Ngahere trees in Northland. Named after the Māori forest god and 'Father of the Forest' respectively, these trees have become tourist attractions due to their size.

Image:NZ square kauri NI.jpg The Kauri is the largest species of tree in New Zealand. The size and strength of kauri timber made it a popular wood for construction and ship building, particularly for masts of sailing ships. Its light colour makes it good for furniture. The tree sheds its bark in hand-sized chunks to prevent epiphytes from climbing it.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries kauri gum (semi-fossilised kauri resin) was a valuable commodity, particularly for varnish, and was the focus of a considerable industry at the time.

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