Nothofagus menziesii
Endemic New Zealand evergreen tree, named for Archibald Menzies.
Nothofagus menziesii, called silver beech, is an evergreen tree that belongs to the family Nothofagaceae. It grows only in New Zealand, where it is common across both the North and South Islands. The tree can reach 30 metres in height, with a trunk up to 1–2 metres across. Its bark is smooth and silvery-grey on young trees, marked with horizontal lenticels, but becomes more furrowed as the tree ages. Silver beech is thought to live for about 600 years.
British botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker first described the species in 1871, naming it after the Scottish naturalist Archibald Menzies. Within the genus Nothofagus, it sits in the subgenus Lophozonia. The genus itself likely originated on the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana around 80–90 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous, in what is now the Antarctic Peninsula.
Flower clusters appear in groups of one to four per branchlet, each on a short, slightly hairy stalk that holds a single terminal flower. The perianth is 5–6 mm across, split into two uneven parts, each divided into two or three segments. Each flower contains 30 to 36 stamens with tiny anthers at the tips. Kākā (Nestor meridionalis) sometimes visit the tree, digging for pūriri moth larvae (Aenetus virescens) and leaving deep scars in the bark. Across New Zealand, deer browse on seedlings and young trees, eating the foliage and often killing the seedlings. Māori consider New Zealand’s Nothofagus species taonga (treasured), and the timber was once used to make fishing hooks. The IUCN Red List assessed silver beech in 2017 as “Least Concern,” with a population trend listed as “Stable.”
- Height
- Up to 30 metres (100 feet)
- Trunk diameter
- 1–2 metres (3 ft 3 in – 6 ft 7 in)
- Lifespan
- Estimated 600 years
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN, 2017)
- Population trend
- Stable
- Diploid chromosome count
- 26
- First described
- 1871 by Joseph Dalton Hooker
Lore & Background
Nothofagus menziesii was first formally described in 1871 by British botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker, who named the species after Scottish naturalist Archibald Menzies. The tree is endemic to New Zealand and is widespread across both the North and South Islands. It belongs to the subgenus Lophozonia within the genus Nothofagus, and is the only New Zealand Nothofagus species in that subgenus. A 2013 proposal to rename it Lophozonia menziesii was not widely accepted outside New Zealand, with a 2015 revision arguing that fossil taxa dominate the family and that reclassification would cause taxonomic complications.
Reader's Guide
Nothofagus menziesii, or silver beech, is a significant species in New Zealand's forests, valued both ecologically and culturally. Its timber was an important resource for Māori, crafted into fishing hooks, and the tree is considered taonga (treasured). The species has an estimated lifespan of 600 years and is assessed as 'Least Concern' with a stable population trend by the IUCN Red List. Ecologically, it provides habitat for kākā (Nestor meridionalis) that search for pūriri moth larvae, though deer browsing on seedlings and foliage often leads to seedling death. The tree's flavonoid profile is almost identical to that of Nothofagus alpina, and its genus traces back to Gondwana approximately 80–90 million years ago.
Did You Know?
- Nothofagus menziesii has an estimated lifespan of 600 years.
- Its bark is silvery-greyish on young trees, becoming more furrowed with age.
- The species was named after Scottish naturalist Archibald Menzies by Joseph Dalton Hooker in 1871.
- Its nuts contain a single seed weighing about 4–5 mg.
More in Flowering Trees & Shrubs 1-20
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