Roystonea

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Roystonea
Temporal range: Miocene–Recent
Roystonea regia.jpg
Roystonea regia
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Arecales
Family: Arecaceae
Subfamily: Arecoideae
Tribe: Roystoneae
J.Dransf., N.W.Uhl, Asmussen, W.J.Baker, M.M.Harley & C.Lewis  [1]
Genus: Roystonea
O.F.Cook   [2]
Type species
Roystonea regia
Synonyms [3]
  • GorgasiaO.F.Cook

Roystonea is a genus of eleven species of monoecious palms, native to the Neotropics, in the Caribbean, the adjacent coasts of Florida in the United States, Mexico, Central America and northern South America. [3] [4] [5] Commonly known as the royal palms, the genus was named after Roy Stone, a U.S. Army engineer. It contains some of the most recognizable and commonly cultivated palms of tropical and subtropical regions.

Contents

Description

Detail of the base of the stem of Roystonea dunlapiana showing columnar stem and leaf scars Roystonea dunlapiana8.jpg
Detail of the base of the stem of Roystonea dunlapiana showing columnar stem and leaf scars

Roystonea is a genus of large, unarmed, single-stemmed palms with pinnate leaves. The large stature and striking appearance of a Roystonea palm makes it a notable aspect of the landscape. The stems, which were compared to stone columns by Louis and Elizabeth Agassiz in 1868, are smooth and columnar, although the trunks of R. altissima and R. maisiana are more slender than those of typical royal palms. Stems often are swollen and bulging along portions of their length, which may reflect years where growing conditions were better or worse than average. Leaf scars are often prominent along the stem, especially in young, rapidly growing individuals. Stem color ranges from gray-white to gray-brown except in R. violacea , which have violet-brown or mauve stems. Royal palm, R. oleracea , reaches heights of 42 metres (138 ft), but most species are in the 15 to 20 m (49 to 66 ft) range. [6] The largest Royal palm is located in Floresta Estadual Edmundo Navarro de Andrade in Rio Claro, São Paulo, Brazil with 42.4 m and was discovered by Vincent Ferh and Mauro Galetti

Close up of crown of Roystonea regia showing smooth tapering leaf sheath and fresh leaf scars, Kolkata, India Royal Palm Leaf Sheath.jpg
Close up of crown of Roystonea regia showing smooth tapering leaf sheath and fresh leaf scars, Kolkata, India

Roystonea leaves consist of a sheathing leaf base, a petiole, and a rachis. The leaf base forms a distinctive green sheath around the uppermost portion of the trunk. Known as the crownshaft, this sheath extends 1.4–2 metres (4 ft 7 in – 6 ft 7 in) down the trunk. The petiole connects the lead base with the rachis. The American botanist Scott Zona only reported petiole lengths for three of the 10 species, ranging from 20 to 100 centimetres (8 to 39 in). The rachis is pinnately divided and ranges from 3.2 to 5.8 m (10 to 19 ft) long. The leaf segments themselves range in length from 60 to 79 cm (24 to 31 in) in R. altissima up to as much as 132 cm (52 in) in R. lenis . They are arranged in two or three planes along the rachis. Many authors have reported that the leaves R. oleracea are arranged in a single plane, but Zona reported that this is not the case. [6]

These plants have the ability to easily release their leaves in strong winds, a supposed adaption serving to prevent toppling during hurricanes. Inflorescences occur beneath the crownshaft, emerging from a narrow, horn-shaped bract. The flowers on the branched panicles are usually white, unisexual, and contain both sexes. The fruit is an oblong or globose drupe 1–2 centimetres (0.39–0.79 in) long and deep purple when ripe. [7] Some species so closely resemble one another that scientific differentiation is by inflorescence detail; flower size, colour, etc.

Taxonomy

Roystonea is placed in the subfamily Arecoideae and the tribe Roystoneae, [8] which only contains Roystonea. [9] The placement of Roystonea within the Arecoideae is uncertain; a phylogeny based on plastid DNA failed to resolve the position of the genus within the Arecoideae. [10] As of 2008, there appear to be no molecular phylogenetic studies of Roystonea. [8] One species is known only from two fossilized flowers preserved in Dominican amber which were described in 2002. [11]

Species

Accepted species: [3] [12]

ImageScientific nameDistribution
Roystonea altissima (Mill.) H.E.Moore Jamaica
Roystonea borinquena - San Juan Botanical Garden - DSC07039.JPG Roystonea borinquena O.F.CookUnited States (Puerto Rico), Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Virgin Islands
Roystonea dunlapiana.jpg Roystonea dunlapiana P.H.Allen Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico (Chiapas, Tabasco, Veracruz, Yucatán Peninsula)
Roystonea lenis León Cuba
Roystonea maisiana (L.H.Bailey) Zona Cuba
Casa do Pinhal 05.jpg Roystonea oleracea (Jacq.) O.F.Cook Venezuela, Colombia, Trinidad, Lesser Antilles; naturalized in Guyana, Mauritius and Réunion
Roystonea princeps (Becc.) Burret Jamaica
Palma real o P. botella (Roystonea regia) - Flickr - Alejandro Bayer (2).jpg Roystonea regia (Kunth) O.F.CookMexico (Tabasco, Veracruz, Yucatán Peninsula), Belize, Honduras, United States (Florida), the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Hispaniola; naturalized in Puerto Rico, Panama, El Salvador, Leeward Islands
Roystonea violacea LeónCuba
Roystonea palaea Poinar Miocene, Hispaniola
Roystonea stellata LeónCuba, recently extinct

Distribution

Roystonea has a circum-Caribbean distribution which ranges from southern Florida in the north, to southern Mexico, Honduras and Nicaragua in the east and Venezuela and Colombia in the south. Species are found throughout the Caribbean, although only Jamaica and Hispaniola (with two native species) and Cuba (with five native species) have more than one native species. A few species are planted in Tunisia as well. [6]

Uses

Royal palms are widely planted for decorative purposes throughout their native region, and elsewhere in the tropics and subtropics. Royal palms are very fond of water and thrive on supplemental irrigation. They also do better in a soil with much humus.

Though mainly a decorative plant, royal palms do have some minor agricultural uses. The heart of the palm is used to make salad in some parts of the Caribbean, and its seeds can be used as substitutes for coffee beans. [13] Royal palm seeds were widely used in Cuba to feed pigs at least up to the 1940s and 1950s. The meat of pigs raised with royal palm seeds was said to be the very best. The lard obtained from pigs fattened or raised with royal palm seeds was said to exhibit a grainy texture, and by inference, to have been the best lard to consume. The seeds generally were obtained by men who specialized in climbing the royal palms using a set of two ropes looped around the stem, with two loops around the climber's legs to support himself. Once the climber reached the seed clumps, he would tie the clumps that were mature, cut them, and let them down by a rope supported from other seed clumps.

Related Research Articles

<i>Howea</i> Genus of palms

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.

<i>Bactris</i> Genus of palms

Bactris is a genus of spiny palms which are native to Mexico, South and Central America and the Caribbean. Most species are small trees about 2 m tall, but some are large trees while others are shrubs with subterranean stems. They have simple or pinnately compound leaves and yellow, orange, red or purple-black fruit. The genus is most closely related to several other spiny palms—Acrocomia, Aiphanes, Astrocaryum and Desmoncus. The fruit of several species is edible, most notably B. gasipaes, while others are used medicinally or for construction.

<i>Coccothrinax</i> Genus of palms

Coccothrinax is a genus of palms in the family Arecaceae. There are more than 50 species described in the genus, plus many synonyms and subspecies. A new species was described as recently as 2017. Many Coccothrinax produce thatch. In Spanish-speaking countries, guano is a common name applied to Coccothrinax palms. The species are native throughout the Caribbean, the Bahamas, extreme southern Florida and southeastern Mexico, but most of the species are known only from Cuba.

<i>Aiphanes minima</i> Species of plant

Aiphanes minima is a spiny palm tree which is native to the insular Caribbean from Hispaniola to Grenada, and widely cultivated elsewhere. Usually 5–8 metres (16–26 ft) tall, it sometimes grows as an understorey tree and only 2 m (6.6 ft) in height.

Bactris campestris is a small spiny palm which grows in multi-stemmed clumps in savannas and low forests in northern South America from Colombia to the Guianas, Trinidad and Tobago, and northern Brazil.

Roystonea altissima is a species of palm which is endemic to hillsides and mountain slopes near the interior of Jamaica. The name altissima is Latin for "highest", however they are not the tallest species in the genus Roystonea. They are usually found just over sea-level to 760 metres (2,490 ft) in elevation.

<i>Zombia</i> Genus of palm endemic to Hispaniola

Zombia antillarum, commonly known as the zombie palm, is a species of palm tree and the only member of the genus Zombia. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles. Usually found in dry, hilly areas of northern and southern Haiti and the northwest of the Dominican Republic, Z. antillarum is a relatively short fan palm with clustered stems and a very distinctive appearance caused by its persistent spiny leaf sheaths. Threatened by habitat destruction in Haiti, Z. antillarum is a popular ornamental species due to its distinctive appearance, low maintenance requirements and salt tolerance.

<i>Desmoncus</i> Genus of plants

Desmoncus is a genus of mostly climbing, spiny palms native to the Neotropics. The genus extends from Mexico in the north to Brazil and Bolivia in the south, with two species present in the southeastern Caribbean.

<i>Roystonea dunlapiana</i> Species of palm

Roystonea dunlapiana, commonly known as yagua or cabiche is a species of palm which is native to Nicaragua, Honduras, and southern Mexico. It is the only species in the genus Roystonea which is absent from the insular Caribbean.

<i>Chelyocarpus</i> Genus of palms

Chelyocarpus is a genus of small to medium-sized fan palms which are native to northwestern South America. Some are upright trees, while others creep along the ground. Species are used for thatch, to weave hats, stuff pillows and as a source of salt.

<i>Hedyscepe</i> Genus of palms

Hedyscepe canterburyana, the big mountain palm or umbrella palm, is the sole species in the genus Hedyscepe of the family Arecaceae. It is endemic to Lord Howe Island, Australia and is threatened by habitat loss. It is a solitary palm with a distinct crownshaft, and bears unisexual flowers of both sexes. With the Rhopalostylis palms of Norfolk Island and New Zealand it forms the botanic subtribe Rhopalostylidinae. If differs from Rhopalostylis in minor floral details including having more than six stamens, and in being protandrous rather than protogynous. The two genera were formerly included in Archontophoenicinae until a recent revision. In some molecular phylogenetic analyses, Hedyscepe was found to be nested in the New Caledonia endemic Basselinia.

<i>Schippia</i> Genus of palms

Schippia concolor, the mountain pimento or silver pimeto, is a medium-sized palm species that is native to Belize and Guatemala. Named for its discoverer, Australian botanist William A. Schipp, the species is threatened by habitat loss. It is the sole species in the genus Schippia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ceroxyloideae</span> Subfamily of palms

The Ceroxyloideae are a subfamily of flowering plants in the palm family found mainly in the Americas with an outlying genus in each of Australia, Madagascar, and the Comoros. Recently revised, the former subfamily Phytelephantoideae was reduced to the tribal level and included, while the Hyophorbeae tribe was reassigned to Arecoideae; it now contains eight genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhopalostylidinae</span> Subtribe of palms

Rhopalostylidinae is a botanical subtribe consisting of two genera of palms from Australia and New Zealand, Hedyscepe and Rhopalostylis. These two genera were formerly included in Archontophoenicinae, to which they are morphologically similar, until a recent revision.

<i>Roystonea regia</i> Species of palm

Roystonea regia, commonly known as the royal palm, Cuban royal palm, or Florida royal palm, is a species of palm native to Mexico, the Caribbean, Florida, and parts of Central America. A large and attractive palm, it has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree. Although it is sometimes called R. elata, the conserved name R. regia is now the correct name for the species. The royal palm reaches heights from 15–24 m (50–80 ft) tall. Populations in Cuba and Florida were long seen as separate species, but are now considered a single species.

<i>Roystonea borinquena</i> Species of palm

Roystonea borinquena, commonly called the Puerto Rico royal palm, is a species of palm which is native to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

<i>Roystonea oleracea</i> Species of palm

Roystonea oleracea, sometimes known as the Caribbean royal palm, palmiste, imperial palm or cabbage palm, is a species of palm which is native to the Lesser Antilles, Colombia, Venezuela, and Trinidad and Tobago. It is also reportedly naturalized in Guyana and on the islands of Mauritius and Réunion in the Indian Ocean.

Roystonea princeps, commonly known as Morass cabbage palm or Morass royal palm, is a species of palm which is endemic to western Jamaica.

Roystonea maisiana is a species of palm which is endemic to the Maisí region of Guantánamo Province in eastern Cuba.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borasseae</span> Tribe of palms

Borasseae is a tribe in the palm subfamily Coryphoideae. The tribe ranges from southern Africa and Madagascar north through the Arabian Peninsula to India, Indochina, Indonesia and New Guinea. Several genera are restricted to islands in the Indian Ocean. The two largest genera, Hyphaene and Borassus, are also the most widespread.

References

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  2. O. F. Cook (1900). "The method of types in botanical nomenclature". Science . ser. 2. 12 (300): 475–481. Bibcode:1900Sci....12..475C. doi:10.1126/science.12.300.475. hdl: 2027/hvd.32044106398464 . JSTOR   1628494. PMID   17750859.
  3. 1 2 3 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  4. Flora of North America, Roystonea O. F. Cook, Science. ser. 2, 12:479. 1900.
  5. Govaerts, R. & Dransfield, J. (2005). World Checklist of Palms: 1-223. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  6. 1 2 3 Scott Zona (December 1996). "Roystonea (Arecaceae: Arecoideae)". Flora Neotropica . 71: 1–35. JSTOR   4393871.
  7. Robert L. Riffle & Paul Craft (2003). An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms. Portland: Timber Press. p. 441. ISBN   978-0-88192-558-6.
  8. 1 2 Julissa Roncal; Scott Zona & Carl E. Lewis (2008). "Molecular phylogenetic studies of Caribbean palms (Arecaceae) and their relationships to biogeography and conservation". The Botanical Review . 74 (1): 78–102. doi:10.1007/s12229-008-9005-9. S2CID   40119059.
  9. Argelia Cuenca; Conny B. Asmussen-Lange & Finn Borchsenius (2008). "A dated phylogeny of the palm tribe Chamaedoreeae supports Eocene dispersal between Africa, North and South America" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 46 (2): 760–775. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.10.010. PMID   18357644.[ permanent dead link ]
  10. Conny B. Asmussen; John Dransfield; Vinnie Deickmann; Anders S. Barfod; Jean-Christophe Pintaud & William J. Baker (2006). "A new subfamily classification of the palm family (Arecaceae): evidence from plastid DNA phylogeny" (PDF). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society . 151 (1): 15–38. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.2006.00521.x .
  11. George Poinar Jr. (2002). "Fossil palm flowers in Dominican and Baltic amber". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society . 139 (4): 361–367. doi: 10.1046/j.1095-8339.2002.00052.x .
  12. Carnevali, G., J. L. Tapia-Muñoz, R. Duno de Stefano & I. M. Ramírez Morillo. 2010. Flora Ilustrada de la Peninsula Yucatán: Listado Florístico 1–326
  13. Hugh Thomas (1971). Cuba: the Pursuit of Freedom. New York: Harper & Row. p.  18. ISBN   978-0-06-014259-9.