The tepals still cup the berry at maturity unlike A. fragans in which the tepals peel back. The leaf width and venation are within the description of A. grandis in Flora II.
Collection events
Primary collection event
Collection event type:
Field
Standard locality
Location:
Near Oxford, Coopers Creek, Taylors Bush
Verbatim locality:
Near Oxford, Coopers Creek, Taylors Bush
Verbatim collector:
Miles Giller
Standardised collector:
Miles Giller
Verbatim date:
2 Mar 2021
Start date:
2021-03-02
Country:
New Zealand
Land District:
Canterbury Land District
Ecological District:
Oxford
Native lands:
Ngāi Tahu
Georeferences:
New Zealand Transverse Mercator:
1525575E 5207520N (WGS84 -43.281457 172.082699)
Altitudes:
from 315m
Habitat:
Growing as individuals or cluster of plants (occasionally quite dense) in a small well-lit clearing in a remnant of wetland podocarp-beech forest, on heavy fertile swamp-forest soils. Also growing on adjacent toe-slopes.
Microhabitat:
Adjacent hill-slopes dominated by black beech (Fuscospora solandri) over occasional Griselinia littoralis, Carpodetus serratus, Lophomyrtus obcordata, Neomyrtus pedunculata and Coprosma rhamnoides. Adjacent swamp forest is dominated by Fuscospora solandri, Dacrycarpus dacrydioides, Prumnopitys taxifolia, and Elaeocarpus hookerianus over Lophomyrtus obcordata, Neomyrtus pedunculata, Coprosma dumosa, C. rigida and C. pedicellata. The small clearing is dominated by Coprosma rigida and Coprosma propinqua (undergoing natural succession back to wetland podocarp forest), over rushes and grasses, interspersed by Rubus fruticosus agg. The groundcover was dominated by scattered fers (mainly Blechnum penna-marina) over mosses.
Notes:
Population size: Locally plentiful (hundred of plants). Several patches of up to about 1 square metre were observed. Frequent younger volunteers on similar wetland landforms and toe-slopes near by.
This location is about 1km from View Hill Scenic Reserve where Astelia grandis was collected by L.B. Moore in 1968 (CHR 188086).
Several plants carried clusters of ripening seeds. The presence of scattered younger plants indicates active recruitment. Many leaves had significant holes eaten out by insect damage.