Black sheoak
Allocasuarina littoralis
The 'needles' are actually photosynthetic branchlets called cladodes; the true leaves are reduced to tiny, microscopic teeth-like scales encircling the joints.
- Scientific name
- Allocasuarina littoralis
- Taxonomy
- Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Fagales › Casuarinaceae › Allocasuarina
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Dry sclerophyll forests, coastal woodlands, and sandy or sandstone-based soils.
- Diet
- Autotrophic (Photosynthetic)
- Range
- Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania
- Size
- 8 to 15 meters in height
- Lifespan
- 30 to 50 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Land clearing for urban development, inappropriate fire regimes, and invasive weed competition.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless. Safe to approach, touch, and rest beneath. Be mindful of falling woody cones underfoot, and note that wind-blown pollen may trigger mild seasonal allergies in sensitive individuals.
Allocasuarina littoralis , commonly known as black sheoak , black she-oak , or river black-oak , is an endemic medium-sized Australian tree (usually up to 8 metres, but sometimes to 15 metres - coarse shrub in exposed maritime areas). A. littoralis is named for its growth near the coast; this is somewhat misleading, as it will grow well both inland and in coastal zones.
Photo: Max Campbell, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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