About Pterophylla sylvicola (Sol. ex A.Cunn.) Pillon & H.C.Hopkins
Pterophylla sylvicola, commonly called tōwai, grows to 15 meters or taller, with a trunk that can reach up to 1 meter in diameter. Adult leaves are leathery, toothed, and bear up to five pairs of leaflets. Juvenile leaves are thinner, and carry up to ten pairs of leaflets. This species produces small pink or white flowers that grow in racemes measuring 8 to 12 centimeters long. Its fruits are 4–5 centimeter capsules that release many tiny seeds, which are dispersed by wind. In terms of range and habitat, tōwai grows in forests and along forest margins, ranging from North Cape south to the Waitākere Ranges west of Auckland. A closely related tree, kāmahi (Pterophylla racemosa), replaces tōwai in areas south of latitude 37°S.
