Rank Species | Genus Eucalyptus Higher classification Gum trees | |
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Similar Gum trees, Eucalyptus microtheca, Eucalyptus populnea, Eucalyptus largiflorens, Acacia harpophylla | ||
Eucalyptus coolabah is a eucalypt of riparian zones and is found throughout Australia from arid inland to coastal regions. The plant is commonly called coolibah or coolabah, the name being a loanword from the Indigenous Australian Yuwaaliyaay word, gulabaa.
Propagation is dependent on periods of immersion under water to sterilise seedbeds; as a result, the species is restricted to locales that experience at least periodic flooding. Nonetheless, the tree can be found over extensive areas of floodplain far from permanent water, as well as near seasonally flooded springs or close to permanent bodies of water.
E. coolabah is a wide-spreading tree (often more wide than tall) and reaches up to 15 m in height. The bark is box-like (persistent, dark grey, thick, furrowed) on the trunk and lower branches, but smooth pale grey up the top.
Similar species
E. coolabah is very similar to E. microtheca. The main external difference is that the latter has rough bark to the small branches, while in E. coolabah the branches have smooth white, pale grey, or pink bark. E. coolabah was once known as E. microtheca (which now has a number of subspecies), before splitting.
