Editing Cycas ophiolitica II (section)

===Observations in Habitat===
''C. ophiolitica'' grows with its splendid blue coloration in the Marlborough district of Central Queensland. This plant has a blue colour in its leaves, petioles and maturing seeds that is familiar with other species that inhabit North Queensland. The new flushes of this Cycas start out a splendid sky blue and become a grey green colour depending on the location of individual colonies. Plants further south however do not show signs of attaining this blue plumage and remain a deep green. Why is there such a variation of colour within the same species of this Cycas? This topic with regards to the blue coloration in all cycads around the globe, has been discussed many times in the past in various publications and by cycad growers. ''C. ophiolitica'' often grows in the habitat that ''M. miquelli'' likes too, and both species along with black boys (grass trees) co-exist together forming large colonies along hill sides and along the edges of steep gullies. Many plants from many areas have black burnt trunks which are the result of an occasional bush fire that has swept through. Although unappealing to the eye, fires do not seem to harm adult plants and they soon push through new flushes of leaves. It truly is a rewarding sight to observe a whole entire colony of these plants all with brand new leaves. Summers here are hot and the winters dry and cool, most rain falls as seasonal summer rain in the way of storms or monsoonal activity.

The word Ophiolitica can be broken down into its Greek translation as Ophios (snake) and Lithos (rock), which in turn can be recognized as Serpentine or snake rock. The soils in the Marlborough district are of serpentine origin, serpentine meaning that they were formed from the breakdown of rocks that contain high concentrations of manganese, chromium or nickel. Another interesting note is in with regards to the island of New Caledonia that also has serpentine soils. The soils here have unique specialized flora including many palms that prefer to grow only in the serpentine soils of this island. Soils on New Caledonia contain heavy concentrations of nickel, and in fact the islands main export is provided from its nickel mining. ''C. ophiolitica'' grows in serpentine soils that contain Manganese, and in some areas if one is to scratch around in the soil, you can find small lumps of this ore. Close by in the local vicinity, this manganese ore is mined, and small pieces of this ore can be found on the side of the highway.

Another species of cycad also prefers these serpentine soils, and grows in small, scattered colonies further south towards Rockhampton. This plant is called ''Macrozamia serpentina'' and in appearance looks very similar to ''M. miquelli''. ''M. serpentina'' looks like a smaller version of ''M. miquelli'' but with fewer leaves and smaller cones. The question is, could the manganese content in the soil be a contributing factor to the blue colour of ''C. ophiolitica'' within this region? The population further south does not share this blue trait. I am no scientist but a ph soil test would be interesting to find out if this mineral is available to these plants. From what I can gather there appears to be many factors to consider when searching for a possible explanation and ph is only one of them, a study of some sort would be very interesting in the future.

In the past I have tried several small plants in cultivation, but bad seasons of chewing insects have not allowed proper flushes to emerge without damage. Some of the smaller ones appear to have retained their blue colour but two of the larger ones in pots have not shown any signs of new growth. Both of the larger plants in pots have been checked for new root growth, and they both have established good root systems. To find seeds on the Marlborough plants is a difficult task, especially plants that are situated not too far from the highway which makes them easily accessible to people chasing seed. Female plants occasionally seem to retain their seed without being raided, as I have observed good seedling recruitment in quite a few localities.

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[[File:Cycas_ophioliticaG04.jpg|frame|Figure 3. Male ''C. ophiolitica'' "Green" in front of ''M. miquelli''.]]
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