Desmoncus prunifer Poepp. ex Mart., Hist. Nat. Palm. 2: 148 (1837)

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Distribution

Map uses TDWG level 3 distributions (https://github.com/tdwg/wgsrpd)
Peru present (World Checklist of Arecaceae)B
From 5°13'-5°54'S and 75°40'-76°05'W in Peru (Loreto) at 135 m elevation in lowland rainforest . (Henderson, A. 2011: A revision of Desmoncus (Arecaceae). – Phytotaxa 35: 1-88)A

Discussion

  • Taxonomic notes:-This name, as Desmoncus polyacanthos var. prunifer (Poeppig ex Martius) Henderson, based on D. prunifer Poeppig ex Martius, was mistakenly used by Henderson (1995) for specimens here identified as Desmoncus vacivus. The type of D. prunifer was given by Henderson as Poeppig 2148, although this specimen was not cited by Martius. Three sheets of Poeppig 2148 are extant at G but comprise leaves only. Two other specimens were at W but are both now destroyed, although images are extant. Neither is labeled as Poeppig 2148, although both appear to have been collected by Poeppig at the type locality. One is illustrated by Dahlgren (1959, plate 194, negative 31323) and appears to be the same species as Poeppig 2148. The second specimen at W, an image of which is present at NY (negative 31325), also appears to be the same species, and has a densely spiny peduncular bract. The images of these five specimens strongly resemble one another and three recently-collected specimens (Croat 18115, Killip 28045, Williams 785) from the same general locality, including one from Yurimaguas itself. Based on this, they are all regarded as conspecific, and the Yurimaguas specimen (Killip 28045) is designated as epitype of D. prunifer (because the type is sterile). Unfortunately these specimens still lack fruits (described by Martius as ?magnitudine juglandum? but apparently lost). Desmoncus prunifer shares all character states with Desmoncus polyacanthos, but differs it its much more densely spiny peduncular bract and spinulose pinnae bases. A fourth specimen (Galeano 2113) from some distance away in Colombia (Amazonas) may also belong here. This specimen has a single fruit, but this is not unusually large and appears similar to those of D. polyacanthos. This specimen is not included in the above description but is mapped. (Henderson, A. 2011: A revision of Desmoncus (Arecaceae). – Phytotaxa 35: 1-88)A

Description

  • Distinguished from var. polyacanthos by its larger fruits, 1.5-2.2 cm long and 1.3-1.8 cm in diameter (Borchsenius F., Borgtoft-Pedersen H. and Baslev H. 1998. Manual to the Palms of Ecuador. AAU Reports 37. Department of Systematic Botany, University of Aarhus, Denmark in collaboration with Pontificia Universidad Catalica del Ecuador)C
  • Plants height no data; stems 0.8(0.7-0.8) cm diameter, branching no data. Leaf petioles 3.8(2.2-5.4) cm long; rachises 46.5 cm long, 3.2(2.8-3.6) mm wide, the spines usually <1 cm long, mostly abaxial, recurved with markedly swollen bases; pinnae 8 per side of rachis, without long, filiform apices, without a beard of spines at the bases, with uneven surfaces at the bases adaxially, usually covered with spinules and/or dense tomentum; basal pinna 11.3(10.0-12.5) cm long, 2.4(2.3-2.4) cm wide; cirri well-developed, with acanthophylls, with few spines abaxially, mostly on proximal part only, with no intermediate acanthophylls present, usually with a wide gap between pinnae and acanthophylls (i.e., gap wider than that between adjacent acanthophylls). Inflorescences with the rachis angular, slightly twisted, thicker than the few to numerous, closely spaced and spirally arranged rachillae, each rachilla not (or very rarely) adnate to the rachis, subtended by an acute bracteole and with a well-developed axillary pulvinus; peduncles 2.6(2.3-2.9) mm wide; peduncular bracts 18.0 cm long, broad, the surfaces ridged, brown tomentose, densely covered with short, recurved, markedly swollen-based, diagonally oriented spines, these triangular in cross-section, whitish-brown proximally, brown distally, with tomentose margins; rachillae 10(7-13), glabrous or scarcely tomentose initially; proximal rachillae 5.4(5.2-5.5) cm long, 1.7(1.5-1.9) mm wide; stamens no data; fruits no data (Henderson, A. 2011: A revision of Desmoncus (Arecaceae). – Phytotaxa 35: 1-88)A

Bibliography

    A. Henderson, A. 2011: A revision of Desmoncus (Arecaceae). – Phytotaxa 35: 1-88
    B. World Checklist of Arecaceae
    C. Borchsenius F., Borgtoft-Pedersen H. and Baslev H. 1998. Manual to the Palms of Ecuador. AAU Reports 37. Department of Systematic Botany, University of Aarhus, Denmark in collaboration with Pontificia Universidad Catalica del Ecuador