Mackinlaya confusa

Mackinlaya confusa is a plant in the carrot, fennel and parsley family Apiaceae that is endemic to Queensland, Australia. It was first described in 1909.

Description
Mackinlaya confusa is a shrub growing up to 6 m tall, usually unbranched. The compound leaves are held on petioles up to 25 cm long, with 5–7 leaflets arranged around a common attachment point (i.e. they are palmate). The leaflets are (without hairs), measure up to 21 cm long and 10 cm wide, and their margins may be smooth, toothed or lobed.

The inflorescence is and takes the form of an umbel of umbels of umbels - that is, a number of stalks of equal length emanate from a single point on the plant, which in turn branch from a common point into more stalks, and these finally branch into a number of flower stalks (pedicels), again of common length and attachment point, and each carrying a single flower. Individual flowers are about 2.5 mm diameter and may be white, cream or green.

The fruit when ripe is a glaucous 2-lobed drupe about 10 mm long and 15 mm wide, which may be blue, purple, black or reddish. The remnants of the and  usually persist at the apex, and they contain 1 or 2 cream to pale brown seeds.

Phenology
Flowering occurs from January to June, fruit have been observed from July to January.

Taxonomy
This species was first formally published in 1909 by the English botanist William Botting Hemsley, in the journal Kew Bulletin of Miscellaneous Information (now known as Kew Bulletin).

Etymology
The genus Mackinlaya was erected by Mueller and named in honour of the Scottish-born Australian explorer John McKinlay (cited as "J. MacKinlay" by Mueller). The species epithet confusa is from the Latin confusus meaning confused, and is a reference to the complex branching (i.e. three times umbellate) of the inflorescence.

Distribution and habitat
This species is endemic to Queensland and is found from the top of Cape York Peninsula, southwards along the east coast to Hinchinbrook Island. It grows in and adjacent to various types of rainforest, at altitudes from sea level up to 1000 m.

Ecology
The fruit are eaten by cassowaries (Casuarius casuarius) and golden bowerbirds (Prionodura newtoniana).

Conservation
This species is listed by the Queensland Government's Department of Environment, Science and Innovation as least concern. , it has not been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).