Bactris pilosa H.Karst.

  • Authority

    Henderson, A. 2000. (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 79: 1-181. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Arecaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Bactris pilosa H.Karst.

  • Type

    Type: Venezuela. Zulia: Maracaibo, H. Karsten s.n. (holotype, W, destroyed; F neg. 31316). Venezuela. Zulia: Dist. Colón, Casigua El Cubo, 350-450 m, 1 Aug 1979, G. Bunting & M. Fucci 7791 (neotype, here designated, NY; isotype, US).

  • Synonyms

    Bactris hirsuta Burret, Guilielma granatensis H.Karst., Bactris granatensis (H.Karst.) H.Wendl.

  • Description

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    Species Description - Stems usually cespitose, rarely solitary, forming large, dense clumps, 2-10 m tall, 2.5-4 cm diam., spiny on internodes. Leaves 4-8; leaf spines somewhat clustered, yellowish brown or black, darker at base and apex, or black, terete, to 5 cm long, dense on sheath and lateral, adaxial surfaces of petiole, fewer on abaxial surface of rachis; sheath 20-80 cm long, sheath, petiole, and rachis brown-tomentose; ocrea to 10 cm long; petiole 28-60 cm long; rachis 1.2-2.2 m long; pinnae 59-68 per side, regularly or irregularly arranged (and then with gaps), spreading in the same or different planes, linear, aristate, slightly to densely pilose on adaxial and abaxial surface; middle pinnae 27-47 × 1.5-2.2 cm. Inflorescences interfoliar; peduncle 1435 cm long, recurved, spiny; prophyll 16-18 cm long; peduncular bract 27-47 cm long, brown-tomentose, densely covered with soft, appressed, brown spines, with longer, black spines intermixed; rachis 4-6 cm long; rachillae 6-26, 13-25 cm long, at anthesis not seen; triads irregularly arranged among paired or solitary staminate flowers; staminate flowers 3-5.5 mm long; sepal lobes 1-1.5 mm long; petals 3-5 mm long; stamens 5-6; pistillode absent; pistillate flowers 3-6 mm long; calyx cupular, 3-5 mm long, spinulose or glabrous; corolla urceolate, to 4.5 mm long, lepidote; staminodes absent; fruits 1.3-2.5 × 1-2 cm, depressed obovoid, rostrate, purple-black, covered with short spinules; mesocarp juicy; endocarp turbinate, the sterile pores displaced longitudinally; endocarp fibers numerous, with juice sacs attached; fruiting perianth with spinulose calyx longer than the corolla, without staminodial ring.

  • Discussion

    The stems are used in construction (Bernal & Galeano 405).

    Bactris pilosa is diagnosed by its linear, pilose pinnae, pistillate calyx greatly exceeding the corolla, and spinulose, purple-black fruits. Synonymy was established in part by Wessels Boer (1988). The type of B. pilosa was apparently destroyed. I have therefore designated a neotype. Bactris granatensis is also included here, although it was placed by Sanders (1991) in a different clade from B. pilosa. There is a marked difference in fruit size within this species; Bernal & Galeano 405 has fruits 2 cm diameter, whereas fruits of most other specimens are about half that size (see Galeano & Bernal, 1987).

  • Common Names

    lata macho, sansagarra, uvita, albarico, chirime

  • Distribution

    Eastern Panama (Darién), Colombia (Antioquia, Bolívar, Chocó, Córdoba, Magdalena, Norte de Santander, Sucre, Tolima), Venezuela (Táchira, Zulia), and Ecuador (Los Ríos) (Fig. 55B); lowland forest at 100-830 m elevation.

    Panama Central America| Darién Panamá Central America| Colombia South America| Antioquia Colombia South America| Bolívar Colombia South America| Chocó Colombia South America| Córdoba Colombia South America| Magdalena Colombia South America| Norte de Santander Colombia South America| Sucre Colombia South America| Tolima Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Táchira Venezuela South America| Zulia Venezuela South America| Los Ríos Ecuador South America|