Antarctic Beech

Nothofagus moorei

Family Nothofagaceae

Ancient Gondwanan relict

About

A living link to the Gondwana supercontinent — individual trees are estimated at 2,500–3,000 years old, with one root system measured at over 5,000 years old. Lamington is the most northerly location these forests survive.

How to spot it

Small, dark, toothed leaves with a glossy top surface. Gnarled, moss-covered multi-trunked crowns formed by trees re-sprouting from a single ancient root base. Found in cool temperate rainforest above roughly 900m — the Lamington Border Track and upper Springbrook are the places to look.

Documented on these trails

Falcorostrum Loop walking track

Border Ranges National Park

Brindle Creek Walking Track

Border Ranges National Park

Border Track

Lamington National Park

Tullawallal Circuit

Lamington National Park

Coomera Circuit

Lamington National Park (Binna Burra)

Careys Peak Walking Track

Barrington Tops National Park

Found in

Lamington National Park — South East Queensland hikes
Springbrook National Park
Barrington Tops NP
Border Ranges NP
New England NP

Source: Queensland Dept of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation; Wikipedia

Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons