Coast Euodia

Coast euodia (Melicope vitiflora) is a tree in the family Rutaceae, native to coastal and littoral rainforest of Queensland, Australia, particularly in the Wet Tropics region near Cairns and north Queensland. It grows in lowland and coastal rainforest margins, gallery forest, and beach scrub on sandy or volcanic soils adjacent to the Coral Sea. Like other members of the genus Melicope, it bears opposite, compound leaves; small, four-petalled white or cream flowers; and small woody capsular fruits that split to release seeds. The genus is distributed across the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions, from Australia through the Pacific islands to Hawaii. Coast euodia is typically a small to medium tree reaching up to 15 metres in undisturbed rainforest. It is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, reflecting its occurrence within protected areas including the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. Like many rainforest trees, its reproduction depends on animal dispersers, particularly pigeons and fruit doves. The species contributes to the complex structure of Australia's tropical coastal rainforests.