Australian Rainforest Fruits: A Field Guide is a concise guide to 504 of the more common and widespread rainforest species occurring in eastern Australia, as well as a few species that are rare in the wild but generally well-known. Some species also occur in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and overseas. This book is an abbreviated extraction of the 2436 species covered in more detail in Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest published by Nokomis Editions in 2004、 but includes 24 species not illustrated in previous editions of the Truit Book'.
The fruits in this book are found in various types of rainforest from wet tropical rainforest, deciduous rainforest, mangroves and littoral rainforest to subtropical rainforest. Some species tolerate a broad range of habitats and can also be found in areas such as the dry inland.
The species are arranged by colour of ripe fruit, then by size and form (whether capsules, dry iπdehiscent fruit, drupes or berries). Most fruit are green before ripening, so maturity should always be checked before an identification is attempted. A colour strip on each page shows the fruit colour category and this strip corresponds to the key on page 1. The fruit colours are grouped in five broad categories: pink to purple, blue to black, yellow and orange to red, green and brown, and lastly shades of white. On each plate, all fruit are scaled according to the scale bar at the bottom of the page. A * denotes naturalised species that have become established outside their native range. Each species description is accompanied by a leaf drawing indicating the venation and the arrangement of the leaves on the stem. Distribution maps are included as a quick reference to each species's occurrence. The distribution is shown in red and for some strictly coastal species the distribution is shown as a red line along the map outline.
Botanical taxonomy has undergone many changes in recent times, particularly in response to studies in DNA analysis. The new groupings are likely to be long-lasting so we have endeavoured to follow the latest family combinations. Therefore some species in this book will now belong to different families from those of the recent past. A checklist that includes all fruiting plants (excluding orchids) that occur in the rainforests of eastern Australia is in the back of this book.
Rainforest fruits are often beautifully coloured and look almost edible. However, many species are extremely poisonous and we strongly advise that none should be tasted without expert advice. That birds and mammals eat a fruit is not an indication that it is safe for human consumption. Animals feed on many species that are poisonous to us.
Field guides can be the first step to identifying species and beginning to learn about the subject Much more information can be gleaned from further references if desired.

Introduction v

Acknowledgements vi

Key to rainforest fruits 1

Pale pink, hot pink, reddish-pink or purple fruits 2

Blue to black or blackish-red fruits 16

Red, orange or yellow fruits 46

Green to brown fruits 128

White fruits 206

Checklist of fruiting rainforest plants in eastern Australia from far north Qld to Victoria (excluding orchids) 212

Glossary 254

Index 255

中国农科院农业信息研究所