Species name :

Tetraclinis articulata(Vahl) Masters
Published in Jour. Roy. Hort. Soc. 14: 250 (1892)

Synonyms :
(basionym or principal syn.)

Thuja articulata

Full list of synonyms : [Euro+Med] [PlantList] [IPNI] [POWO] [Catalogue of Life ]

Plant Family :

Cupressaceae Barlett (The Cypress Family)
5 species from the Cupressaceae family are recorded from the Maltese Islands.

English name(s) :

Sandarac Gum Tree, Mediterranean Alerce, Arar Tree

Maltese name(s) :

Siġra tal-Għargħar, Għargħar

Status for Malta :

Indigenous. Present on the Maltese islands before man

Frequency :

Very Common     Common     Frequent     Scarce     Rare     Very rare     Extinct

Growth form :

Raunkiaer lifeform [info]: Macro-Phanerophyte (high trees usually over 10m )
Germination [info]: Dicotyledon

Legal Protection [link]:

Protected by law: schedule I of LN200/2011 AND schedule III + VI of LN311/2006. (Strictly protected tree species)

Red List (1989) :

This species has a threatened status and is listed in the Red Data Book of the Maltese Islands

Flowering Time :

All year

Colour of Flowers:

Inconspicuous

Remarks :

This is the national tree of Malta. Was believed to be common on the Maltese islands long time ago, but now restricted in few sites and quite rare. Recentely it has been cultivated and used in agriculture and afforestation projects.

Habitat in Europe:

Wooded cliffs near the sea

Preferred habitat in Malta:

Maquis, now confined to edges of escarpments but also cultivated as an ornamental tree in parks.

Botanical Description:

Monoecious, pyramidal tree, 12-15 m high. Buds concealed by the leaves. Twigs flattened. Leaves in groups of 4, the lateral ones larger than the others, all adnate to the twig except at the scale-like apex. Cone solitary, valvate, woody, 8-12 mm in diameter; scales 4, glaucous, triangular, 2 obtuse and 2 acute at the apex, deeply grooved, with a small spine near the apex Seeds with 2 wide wings.

Distributional range:

S.E. Spain (near Cartagena), Malta and N.W. Africa

Distributional map in Europe
and the Mediterranean region (2018):

Occurrences in Europe.
(from Flora Europaea pre year 1993):

Spain (incl. Andorra but excl. the Balaerics), Sicily and/or Malta

Occurrences in Europe and the Mediterranean region.
(Euro+Med Checklist, 2017) - Country codes

? Ag Hs(S) Li Ma Si(M) Tn [Ca(C) nCy]