Long Grass Nature Refuge
Fauna and Flora Detail
WildMan
Wildlife Management System
© Copyright Long Grass Nature Refuge,2011
Return
Help
Scientific Name
Common Name
Type
Notes
Green Kamala occurs mostly in dry rainforest and its range extends from the Richmond River in NSW to the Iron Range in North QLD. The species also extends westward into the very dry Semi-evergreen Vine Thickets. Green Kamala is a common plant on the drier marginal rainforest sites and is often one of the ~first species to germinate after an area has been cleared. Individual plants also sucker quite freely. Green Kamala is also known by several other common names - Smell-of-the-Bush and Odour Bush. These names relate to the distinctive odour which is emitted by the plant at certain times. This odour has been compared to the smell emitted by possums. It is most distinctly noticed when entering a rainforest patch and many people associate it with the introduced shrub Lantana (Lantana camarra) which usually occurs on the scrub margins. The origin of the smell is often difficult to pinpoint to the Green Kamala bush itself because its strength seems to fade as the individual plant is approached. The smell seems to waft away from the plant for some distance. There is some debate as to whether the smell is emitted by both the male and female plants of the species or only by the female plant (this point is yet to be confirmed). Green Kamala has an ovate to elliptical, hairy leaf with a few widely spaced teeth on its margin. It produces small green to yellow flowers on separate male and female trees between October and March. These are followed by softly prickly grey-brown three-lobed seed capsules which split into individual segments when dry. There is one seed in each individual segment.
Photos