Laccospadix
| Laccospadix | |
|---|---|
| |
| Laccospadix australasicus, Herberton Range | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Arecales |
| Family: | Arecaceae |
| Subfamily: | Arecoideae |
| Tribe: | Areceae |
| Subtribe: | Linospadicinae |
| Genus: | Laccospadix H.Wendl. & Drude[1] |
| Species: | L. australasicus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Laccospadix australasicus | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Laccospadix is a monotypic plant genus in the palm family which is endemic to Queensland, Australia.[2] The sole described species is Laccospadix australasicus, commonly called Atherton palm or Queensland kentia. The two Greek words from which it is named translate to "reservoir" and "spadix".
Description
[edit]Laccospadix australasicus may be solitary or clustering, in the former the trunks will grow to around 10 cm in width while clustering plants are closer to 5 cm wide. The trunks may be dark green to almost black at the base, lightening with age, and conspicuously ringed by leaf scars. Lone trunks will reach 7 m in height while the suckering varieties grow to 3.5 m. The leaves are pinnate, emerging erect with a slight arch, to 2 m on 1 m or less petioles; the petioles and rachises are usually covered in scales. The new foliage is often red to bronze, a feature more common in solitary individuals.[3]
The inflorescence is a long, unbranched spike, emerging within the leaf crown, to a meter long, carrying male and female flowers, both with three sepals and three longer petals. Laccospadix fruit is slightly ovoid, one-seeded and bright red, with a smooth epicarp and a thin fleshy mesocarp.[4]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]Found in Queensland, Australia at elevations of 800–1400 m in humid rain forest, they grow on mountains and plateau where they receive little light.
References
[edit]- ^ H. A. Wendland and Drude Nachrichten von der Georg-Agustus-Universität 1875:59. 1875. Type: L. australasica
- ^ a b Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
- ^ Riffle, Robert L. and Craft, Paul (2003) An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms. Portland: Timber Press. ISBN 0-88192-558-6 / ISBN 978-0-88192-558-6
- ^ Uhl, Natalie W. and Dransfield, John (1987) Genera Palmarum - A classification of palms based on the work of Harold E. Moore. Lawrence, Kansas: Allen Press. ISBN 0-935868-30-5 / ISBN 978-0-935868-30-2
External links
[edit]
Media related to Laccospadix australasicus at Wikimedia Commons- Laccospadix on NPGS/GRIN
- Fairchild Guide to Palms: Laccospadix
- GBIF portal
- Plantsystematics.org with images
- Photos at PACSOA
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