Podocarpus nivalis
species of plant
Podocarpus nivalis, the mountain or snow tōtara, is a species of conifer in the family Podocarpaceae. It is a subshrub or shrub endemic to New Zealand.
Name and etymology
Podocarpus nivalis was first described and drawn by W.J. Hooker in 1843 in his Icones Plantarum. The plant described was found on Mount Tongariro, on the North Island of New Zealand, by William Colenso, "near the limits of perpetual snow".
The species name "nivalis" means "growing in or near the snow." A vernacular name for the plant is "alpine tōtara".
Description
Podocarpus nivalis grows as a shrub of 20–40 cm. with spreading branches. It can also be semi-erect and up to 2 or 3m tall. Branches that contact the soil often root. It forms mats of a few square metres.
The public source identifies “Podocarpus nivalis” as species of plant. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Podocarpus, nivalis and species.
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A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Podocarpus nivalis”, the useful work is to connect “species of plant” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4992302. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1843.
A general summary may omit uncertainty, sample limits or methodological disagreement that is explicit in the technical record. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Podocarpus nivalis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.