page_title: Banksia paludosa
section_title: Ecology
hierarchical_section_title: Banksia paludosa / Ecology
caption_attribution_description: English: Base of Banksia paludosa ssp paludosa plant showing woody base and buds indicating a lignotuber, Vincentia NSW
context_page_description: Banksia paludosa, commonly known as the marsh or swamp banksia, is a species of shrub in the plant genus Banksia. It is native to New South Wales, Australia, where it is found between Sydney and Batemans Bay, with an isolated population further south around Eden. There are two recognised subspecies, the nominate of which is a spreading shrub to 1.5 m in height, and subsp. astrolux is a taller shrub to 5 m high found only in Nattai National Park.
  Native mammals, such as the brown antechinus and sugar glider, are important pollinators of B. paludosa. Several species of honeyeaters visit the flower spikes, as do ants and the European honey bee. The response to bushfire depends on the subspecies; subspecies paludosa regenerates from underground lignotubers, while plants of subspecies astrolux are killed by fire and regenerate from large stores of seed which have been held in cones in the plant canopy. B. paludosa is sometimes seen in cultivation, with dwarf forms being registered and sold.
context_section_description: Banksia paludosa subspecies paludosa is a slow-growing shrub which regenerates from bushfire by resprouting from its lignotuber. After fire, plants take around three years to flower significantly, but are flowering well by five years afterwards. Flowerhead numbers dwindle by fourteen years post bushfire. Plants are estimated to live to around 60 years of age. Seedlings also appear from seed dispersed after bushfire. All banksias have developed proteoid or cluster roots in response to the nutrient-poor conditions of Australian soils (particularly lacking in phosphorus).
  The flower spikes of B. paludosa are unable to self-pollinate and require pollinators to set seed. A 1988 isozyme study showed very high rates of outcrossing; pollen from one plant is well-mixed among other plants in the locale. Nonflying mammals are important pollinators in heathland habitat, with the brown antechinus (Antechinus stuartii) a frequent visitor to flower spikes. The sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) is another mammal pollinator. Bird species that have been observed foraging and feeding at the flowers include the red wattlebird (Anthochaera carunculata), yellow-faced honeyeater (Lichenostomus chrysops), white-eared honeyeater (L. leucotis), crescent honeyeater (Phylidonyris pyrrhoptera), New Holland honeyeater (P. novaehollandiae), and eastern spinebill (Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris). Insects recorded visiting flower spikes include the European honey bee and ants.
caption: The woody base, known as a lignotuber, of Banksia paludosa subspecies paludosa, with many stems arising, and buds, Vincentia, New South Wales
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