Envoy at 11:50, 21 October 2007

2007-10-21T11:50:43Z

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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Macrozamia communis''
| status = LC
| trend = down
| status_ref = <ref>{{IUCN2006|assessors=Hill|year=2003|id=42000|title=Macrozamia communis|downloaded=12 May 2006}} </ref>
| image = Burrawang1.JPG
| image_width = 250px
| image_caption = ''Macrozamia communis''
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Cycad]]ophyta
| classis = [[Cycad]]opsida
| ordo = [[Cycad]]ales
| familia = [[Zamiaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Macrozamia]]''
| species = '''''M. communis'''''
| binomial = ''Macrozamia communis''
| binomial_authority = [[Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson|L.A.S.Johnson]], 1959
}}

'''''Macrozamia communis''''' is an [[Australia]]n [[cycad]] found on the east coast of [[New South Wales]]. The common name for the species is '''burrawang''', a word derived from the [[Dharuk language|Daruk Australian Aboriginal language]]; this name is also often applied to other species of ''[[Macrozamia]]''.

The burrawang has the most extensive distribution of any cycad in New South Wales and is found along the coast from the district around [[Armidale, New South Wales]] to [[Bega, New South Wales|Bega]] 700 km south and on the coastal slopes of the [[Great Dividing Range]] with some instances on the inland slopes of the range; as far west as [[Mudgee, New South Wales|the Mudgee district]]. It is most abundant on the south coast of the state <ref name="PACSOA">{{cite web | last = Kennedy | first = P. | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 1993 | url = http://www.pacsoa.org.au/cycads/Macrozamia/communis.html | title = Macrozamia communis | work = Cycads | publisher = Palm and Cycad Societies of Australia (PACSOA) | accessdate = 2006-04-30}}</ref>.

The plants grow in open forests <ref name="anbg">{{cite web | year = 2003 | url = http://www.anbg.gov.au/apu/plants/macrcomm.html | title = Burrawang | work = Australian Aboriginal ethnobotany | publisher = [[Australian National Botanic Gardens]] | accessdate = 2006-04-30}}</ref>.
[[Image:BurrawangSeeds.jpg|thumb|left|Burrawang seeds, [[Batemans Bay, New South Wales]], Australia]]
Seed cones are formed after fire. Male and female seed cones are on separate plants and the large female seeds are ripe when red or yellow <ref name="anbg"/>.

The seeds of the burrawang are a good source of starch but are poisonous to eat unless treated. The [[Cadigal]] people pounded and soaked the seeds in water for a week, changing the water daily. The pulp was then made into cakes and roasted over hot embers <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/information_about_plants/botanical_info/aboriginal_bush_foods | title = Aboriginal bush foods | work = Botanical information - Botanic Gardens Trust - Sydney, Australia | publisher = Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW) | accessdate = 2006-04-30}}</ref>.

Although present-day British seed merchants suggest that the species "continued survival must depend upon their cultivation for horticulture" <ref>{{cite web | year = 2005 | url = http://www.edirectory.co.uk/chilternseeds/pages/moreinfo.asp?pe=DBFBBGFGQ_+macrozamia+communis&cid=211 | title = Macrozamia communis for £3.47| work = Seed catalogue | publisher = Chiltern seeds (UK online shopping site)| accessdate = 2006-04-30}}</ref>, the conservation status of the species is "not considered to be at risk" <ref name="RBGSyd">{{cite web | last = Hill | first = K. | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2004 | url = http://plantnet.rbgsyd.gov.au/cgi-bin/cycadpg?taxname=Macrozamia+communis | title = Macrozamia communis | work = The Cycad Pages | publisher = Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney | accessdate = 2006-04-30}}</ref>.

== References ==

<references/>

[[Category:Cycads]]
[[Category:Flora of New South Wales]]

Macrozamia communis - Revision history

Envoy at 11:50, 21 October 2007