Historical notes: Distinguishing features: Distinguished by the glossy deep green, long, spirally twisted leaves with long petioles and long, broad leaflets. Distribution and habitat: New South Wales, far North Coast and coastal ranges, from the Richmond River to Coffs Harbour. Scattered in sclerophyll forests on siliceous soils. Conservation status: Not considered to be at risk (IUCN Red List category LR,lc).
Description:
Plants acaulescent, stem 10-20 cm diam. Leaves 2-10 in crown, deep green, highly glossy, 40-120 cm long, moderately keeled, with 50-120 leaflets; rachis strongly spirally twisted, straight, stiff; petiole 15-30 cm long, straight to recurved, unarmed, 6-11 mm wide at lowest leaflets; basal leaflets not reducing to spines. Leaflets simple, strongly discolorous; margins flat; apex entire or dentate, not spinescent; median leaflets 180-300 mm long, 8-20 mm wide. Pollen cones fusiform, 10-25 cm long, 4-6 cm diam.; microsporophyll lamina 15-25 mm long, 10-20 mm wide; apical spine 1-18 mm long. Seed cones ovoid, 12-23 cm long, 7-11 cm diam.; megasporophyll lamina 30-40 mm long, stipe 25-30 mm long, megasporophyll with an expanded peltate apex 40-55 mm wide, 15-33 mm high; apical spine 3-25 mm long. Seeds ovoid, 25-30 mm long, 20-25 mm wide; sarcotesta red.
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