In 1999, Dalling & Harms simulated 100% above-ground herbivory on seedlings of Gustavia superba, a large-seeded species from Barro Colorado Island, Panama, and showed the remarkable ability for cotyledons to regenerate up to eight new shoots. They used this evidence to propose that cotyledon size (at least in this species)was adaptive in surviving pre- and early post-germination hazards (Dalling & Harms 1999). In this note we describe the first record of multiple resprouting in an Australian tropical plant species. Idiospermum australiense (Diels) S. T. Blake (Calycanthaceae) exhibits characteristics similar (but not identical) to G. superba that support the contention of Dalling & Harms (1999).

During the redrawing of Figure 1 some of the bars within Exp. 1 were omitted, plus the incorrect species name was introduced on two of the graphs. The publishers would like to apologise to the authors and their readers for these errors. The corrected figure appears below.

Figure 6 was inadvertently printed in black and white instead of full colour. Please see the reprinted page 405 in colour overleaf with 406 backing it. This will enable readers to replace the complete page from part 3 if desired. The publishers would like to apologise to the author and their readers for this error.