 The closely related Proserpine bottle tree ("Brachychiton compactus") that occurs only in the vicinity of the town of Proserpine can be distinguished by its more oval leaves, more compact flower heads, and longer ellipsoid follicles.The undescribed Ormeau bottle tree has brighter lime-green new foliage and leaves but is otherwise similar to the Proserpine bottle tree.The species came to the attention of the scientific community when explorer Sir Thomas Mitchell observed the trees on his expedition through Queensland in 1848 and published an account in "Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia" in the same year.