Hyophorbe verschaffeltii | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Arecales |
Family: | Arecaceae |
Genus: | Hyophorbe |
Species: | H. verschaffeltii |
Binomial name | |
Hyophorbe verschaffeltii | |
Hyophorbe verschaffeltii, the palmiste marron or spindle palm, is a critically endangered species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is endemic to Rodrigues island, Mauritius, but is widely grown in cultivation.
The spindle palm is 6 metres (20 ft) tall, and have lightly recurved pinnate leaves. [2] They are elegant looking and are prized for landscape in the tropical and semi-tropical areas of the world. They are fairly short with 8–10 leaves that are held somewhat erect. Spindle palms have a crownshaft that becomes a light gray-green as the palm ages. Horn-like flower spikes emerge from below the crownshaft on mature specimens. Their fruits darken to a black colour when ripe. It was named after Ambroise Verschaffelt (1825–1886).
It sometimes resembles its closest relative, the "bottle palm" ( Hyophorbe lagenicaulis ). Both of these species develop swollen trunks. However the spindle palm's trunk starts to swell in the middle (assuming the shape of a spindle). The bottle palm's trunk continues to swell at the base (often resembling the shape of a bottle). The spindle palm's foliage also has a more yellowish colour. [3]
Spindle palms are endemic to Rodrigues island, Mauritius. It is threatened by habitat loss. [1] There are only fifty or so specimens left in the wild, although its survival as a species is guaranteed due to ubiquitous cultivation in tropical areas of the planet.
Spindle palms are fairly cold intolerant. They are defoliated at 32 °F (0 °C) and may be killed at anything below that. If the palm does survive a freeze, the next few emerging leaves are stunted. Spindle palms grow in the US in south Florida and in isolated favored microclimates along the coastlines of the Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater areas as well as the Cape Canaveral and Satellite Beach areas of central Florida. They do make good container plants that can be protected from a freeze.
Howea is a genus of two palms, H. belmoreana and H. forsteriana, both endemic to Lord Howe Island, Australia. H. forsteriana in particular is commonly grown as an indoor plant in the Northern Hemisphere, and the two species form the mainstay of the island's palm seed industry and more importantly its trade in newly germinated seedlings. The palms are also cultivated on Norfolk Island, where seeds are produced for export.
Zamia furfuracea is a cycad endemic to southeastern Veracruz state in eastern Mexico.
Cycas revoluta is a species of gymnosperm in the family Cycadaceae, native to southern Japan including the Ryukyu Islands. It is one of several species used for the production of sago, as well as an ornamental plant. The sago cycad can be distinguished by a thick coat of fibers on its trunk. The sago cycad is sometimes mistakenly thought to be a palm, although the only similarity between the two is that they look similar and both produce seeds. The leaves grow from the trunk and start out as small leaves near the centre of the plant.
Acanthophoenix rubra, the barbel palm, is a critically endangered palm endemic to Mauritius, Rodrigues, and La Reunion that is prized for its edible palm hearts.
Archontophoenix alexandrae, commonly known as Alexandra palm, king palm, Northern Bangalow palm, or feather palm, is a palm endemic to Queensland, Australia. It was named in honour of Princess Alexandra of Denmark, but is often erroneously referred to by the misnomer Alexander palm.
Hyophorbe amaricaulis is a species of palm tree of the order Arecales, family Arecaceae, subfamily Arecoideae, tribe Chamaedoreeae. It is found exclusively on the island of Mauritius, and only a single surviving specimen has been documented in the Curepipe Botanic Gardens in Curepipe. Thus, it is classified as an endling.
The wildlife of Mauritius consists of its flora and fauna. Mauritius is located in the Indian Ocean to the east of Madagascar. Due to its isolation, it has a relatively low diversity of wildlife; however, a high proportion of these are endemic species occurring nowhere else in the world. Many of these are now threatened with extinction because of human activities including habitat destruction and the introduction of non-native species. Some have already become extinct, most famously the dodo which disappeared in the 17th century.
Adonidia merrillii, the Manila palm, is a palm tree species native to the Philippines. This palm was cultivated for centuries in East Asia before becoming a staple in the West. It is reportedly naturalized in the West Indies and Florida. It is commonly known as the "Christmas palm" because its fruits become bright scarlet and tend to be that color in winter. This palm is typically fairly small and slender, normally attaining 25 feet or 8 meters in height but has attained over 40 feet in some instances. Most plants maintain 5-7 fronds when young, gradually building up the crown as the palm ages, and sometimes reaches 10-12 fronds when mature.
Hyophorbe indica, known commonly as palmier bâtard, palmiste poison, or champagne palm, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is endemic to the island of Réunion. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Hyophorbe is a genus of five known species of flowering plants in the family Arecaceae, native to the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean. All five species can attain heights of over 6 meters, and two of the species develop swollen trunks that have made them popular as ornamentals, but all of them are endangered in the wild.
Hyophorbe lagenicaulis, the bottle palm or palmiste gargoulette, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is native to Round Island, Mauritius.
Hyophorbe vaughanii is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae that is endemic to Mauritius. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests.
Latania verschaffeltii, the yellow latan palm, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is found only on Rodrigues Island in the Indian Ocean, part of the Republic of Mauritius, 560 km east of the Island of Mauritius. It is, however, cultivated in other places as an ornamental. in the wild, the species is threatened by habitat loss.
Normanbya is a monotypic genus of palms containing the single species Normanbya normanbyi, which is known by the common name black palm It is endemic to Queensland, Australia and is threatened by habitat destruction.
Roscheria is an endangered, monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family. The genus is named for Albrecht Roscher, a 19th-century German explorer, and the epithet for its single species R. melanochaetes derives from Latin and Greek meaning 'black' and 'bristle', alluding to the spines covering the trunks. They naturally occur on the Mahé and Silhouette Islands of Seychelles where they grow in mountainous rainforest and are threatened by habitat loss.
Wodyetia bifurcata, the foxtail palm, is a species of palm in the family Arecaceae, native to Queensland, Australia. It is the sole species in the genus Wodyetia.
Dictyosperma is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean. The sole species, Dictyosperma album, is widely cultivated in the tropics but has been farmed to near extinction in its native habitat. It is commonly called princess palm or hurricane palm, the latter owing to its ability to withstand strong winds by easily shedding leaves. It is closely related to, and resembles, palms in the genus Archontophoenix. The genus is named from two Greek words meaning "net" and "seed" and the epithet is Latin for "white", the common color of the crownshaft at the top of the trunk.
An elongated circumferential leaf base formation present on some species of palm is called a crownshaft.
Iguanura is a monoecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family from Southeast Asia, commonly called pinang. Closely related to the Heterospathe palms, they are noted for producing a wide variety of fruit forms. Its name combines the Spanish word for "lizard" with the Greek word for "tail".
Ptychosperma elegans, commonly known as the solitaire palm, is a very slender palm endemic to Queensland in Australia. In the nursery trade and in the United States it may be confusingly referred to as Alexander palm, which is an often-used but misnomered name of another Australian palm species Archontophoenix alexandrae, the Alexandra palm.