Podocarpus nivalis, the mountain or snow tōtara, is a species of conifer in the family Podocarpaceae. It is a subshrub or shrub endemic to New Zealand.
Name and etymology
Podocarpus nivalis was first described and drawn by W.J. Hooker in 1843 in his Icones Plantarum. The plant described was found on Mount Tongariro, on the North Island of New Zealand, by William Colenso, "near the limits of perpetual snow".
The species name "nivalis" means "growing in or near the snow." A vernacular name for the plant is "alpine tōtara".
