Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L01376:reg:2:p3
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L01376
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 2 (pt 3/8)
Character Range: 24282–27162

likely to be limited. Studies of the caches of the introduced black rat (Rattus rattus) – a common predator of trees in orchards, backyards and wild populations close to urban areas – found they did not contain any undamaged nuts; thus, germination of the dispersed seed is unlikely (Elmouttie and Wilson 2005).
Macadamias have had a long association with humans; nut shells have been found in Aboriginal Middens near Brisbane and they are thought to have been a valuable trade item between Aboriginal communities along the east coast of Australia and subsequently with early settlers. Macadamia trees growing on the edges of the rainforest, thus receiving more light and producing more nuts, are likely to have been regularly cropped. It was mainly the women who searched for, collected and prepared the nuts. They cracked the nuts between rocks and either ate them immediately or roasted the nut in the ash of their fires and carried them as a non-perishable food source (McConachie 2012).
Non-indigenous knowledge of Macadamia initiated with collection of specimens of the inedible M. ternifolia by the explorer Ludwig Leichardt in 1843, from about 60 km north of Brisbane. It wasn't until around 1860 that settlers realised the fine eating qualities of both M. integrifolia and M. tetraphylla, subsequently planting them widely in farmyards and backyards as single trees, grown from seeds of local wild stock.
Early realisation of the commercial potential of Macadamia in Australia was inhibited by insect pests (which caused many flowers, nutlets and nuts to be lost), rats and other seed predators, and lack of horticultural knowledge (McConachie 2012). Despite this, the Macadamia nut industry was founded around 1880 at Rous Hill near Lismore using seed from local wild M. tetraphylla, with similar plantings recorded near Maleny in south east Queensland in the early 20th century. It was not until a small handful of Macadamia were sent to Hawai'i in the late 1870s that their full potential was able to be exploited and the industry significantly expanded. Australian Macadamias are the source genetic material for a growing global industry.
From a conservation perspective, the potential translocation of wild trees by First Nations peoples, combined with the transport and planting of nuts both within and outside of the natural distribution of Macadamias that has occurred in Australia since European arrival, can make it difficult to distinguish planted trees from in-situ wild stock. This is particularly the case in areas where native vegetation has been cleared for settlement or agriculture, and regrowth has occurred. This situation confounds identification of Macadamia distribution, natural habitat, and has implications for distribution of genetic resources.
Figure 1. Natural distribution of Macadamia and natural hybrids
Note: Areas of vegetation are those