Scientific name: Widdringtonia cedarbergensis J.A.Marsh 1966

Synonyms: -

Common names: Cape cedar, Clanwilliam cedar, Clanwilliam cypress, Sederboom (Afrikaans)

Description

Tree to 20 m tall but now rarely more than 7 m in the wild, with trunk to 2 m in diameter, usually branching from near the base. Bark furrowed, beautifully flaking in dark gray on purple-brown. Crown conical at first, spreading broadly with age. Juvenile leaves 1-2 cm long, up to 2 mm wide. Scale leaves 2-4 mm long, the free tip shorter than to as long as the attached base, rounded in cross section. Pollen cones about 2 mm long. Seed cones 2-2.5 cm across, the rim and outer face of the scales both strongly warty, the subapical point well developed. Seeds black, the body 6-10 mm long, ovoid, straight, scarcely winged.

South Africa, Cedarberg north of Cape Town. Scattered across rocky outcrops among fire-prone shrublands; 900-1,600 m.

Conservation Status

Red List Category & Criteria: Critically Endangered

(Intensive exploitation in the past, accompanied by changes in intensity and frequency of fires, has resulted in an estimated and observed decline in area of occupancy and quality of habitat of more than 80%. The causes of this decline, while understood, are not reversible and have not ceased. Consequently, Widdringtonia cedarbergensis is assessed as Critically Endangered under the criteria for A2)

References

Farjon, A. (2010). A Handbook of the World's Conifers. Koninklijke Brill, Leiden.

Eckenwalder, J.E. (2009) Conifers of the World: The Complete Reference. Timber Press, Portland.

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Cambridge, UK /Gland, Switzerland