Prestoea carderi Hook.f.

Authority

Henderson, A. & Galeano, Gloria A. 1996. , , and (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72: 1-90. (Published by NYBG Press)

Family

Arecaceae

Scientific Name

Prestoea carderi (W.Bull) Hook.f.

Type

Type. Cultivated specimen from the Palm House, Kew Gardens, originally from Colombia, 8 May 1889, no collector (lectotype, K, here designated).

Synonyms

Euterpe simplicifrons Burret, Euterpe parviflora Burret, Euterpe latisecta Burret, Euterpe brachyclada Burret, Euterpe brevicaulis Burret, Prestoea humilis A.J.Hend. & Steyerm.

Description

Species Description - Stems cespitose with 1 or 2 well-developed stems, or occasionally appearing solitary and then with basal shoots, 0.5-4 m tall, 3-4(-10) cm diam., brown, occasionally procumbent. Leaves 3-6(-10), spreading, regularly pinnate or occasionally simple; sheath open and not forming a crownshaft, somewhat persistent, 30-60 cm long including a ligule to 5 cm long, reddish, fibrous distally at margins; petiole (0.3-)0.9-2.5 m long, ± terete, densely covered with appressed, peltate-lacerate scales, glabrescent, or glabrous; rachis 1-2.4 m (22-48 cm in simple leaves) long, with scales like those of petiole; pinnae (on pinnate leaves) 13-36(-54) on each side, regularly arranged and horizontally spreading in the same plane, subopposite or alternate, linear-lanceolate, aristate, with prominent midvein and lateral veins, midvein lacking scales abaxially, with punctations abaxially, basal pinna 32-60 x (0.2-)1-1.5 cm; middle pinnae 35-70(-90) x 2-4.5(-6) cm; apical pinna 17-35 x 1-4 cm; simple leaves obovate, 38-87 cm long, 20-28 cm wide, bifid apically, with 16-20 main veins per side. Inflorescences racemose, interfoliar, erect in bud and at anthesis, arching in fruit; peduncle (0.4-)0.8-1.4 m long, 4-10(-20) mm diam., terete; prophyll 18-55 cm long, 1.5-5 cm wide; peduncular bract (0.6-)1-2.2 m long including a 5-6 cm long umbo, persistent; rachis 18-66 cm long, densely to moderately covered with reddish brown, branched hairs; rachillae (7-)21-59 (-101), 8.5-27 cm long proximally, 4-10 cm long distally, ca. 1 mm diam. at anthesis, 1.5-1.7 mm diam. in fruit, slightly zig-zag, angular and almost rectangular in cross section, tending to be distichously arranged, especially distally, densely to moderately covered with clusters of reddish brown, branched hairs (occasionally glabrous); flowers in triads on proximal ca. 1/2 rachillae, paired or solitary staminate distally, the triads tending to distichously arranged on the rachillae; triad bracteole low, rounded to prominent, deltate, to 1 mm long; first flower bracteole obscure, second and third bracteoles ± equal, rounded, 0.5 mm long; staminate flowers 3.5-5.5 mm long; sepals triangular, 1-1.5 mm long, keeled; petals ovate, 2.5-5 mm long; stamens arranged on a short receptacle; filaments 1.5 mm long, linear, flattened; anthers 1-2 mm long; pistillode 0.5-1 mm long, trifid at apex; pistillate flowers 2-3.5 mm long; sepals widely ovate, 1.5-2 mm long, fleshy; petals triangular, 1-3.5 mm long; staminodes digitate; fruits globose, 0.7-1 cm diam., the stigmatic remains lateral; epicarp purple-black, minutely tuberculate; seeds globose; endosperm ruminate; eophyll bifid.

Discussion

This species, perhaps more than any other, illustrates local variation in Prestoea and associated taxonomic problems. Local forms are usually well-separated geographically, but it is not clear if this apparent disjunction is real or an artefact of incomplete sampling and/or deforestation in intervening areas. In Venezuela (Yaracuy) there are populations with robust, racemose, markedly tomentose inflorescences with prominent rachilla bracteoles. In the Colombian Andes there are populations with simple leaves and others with pinnate leaves, but both types have a more delicate inflorescence than the form from Yaracuy. Similar pinnate-leaved plants occur in Ecuador, but here there is some variation in inflorescences. Balslev & Henderson 60648 has racemose inflorescences and almost corymobse inflorescences on the same plant. In Peru (Amazonas) a few specimens from the Serranía de Bagua have very small, simple leaves and small inflorescences with rather few rachillae. Chamaedorea pinnatifrons from the same locality is also dwarf in size. Finally, in the southern part of the range of the species, in Peru, are populations with the robust, markedly tomentose inflorescences, similar to the ones that occur in Yaracuy.

Common Names

palmita, chucshomasha

Distribution

Cordillera Central and Oriental in Colombia (Antioquia, Caquetá, Putumayo, Tolima), western Cordillera de la Costa (Yaracuy) in Venezuela, and eastern Andean slopes in Ecuador (Morona-Santiago, Pastaza, Santiago-Zamora) and Peru (Amazonas, Huánuco) (Fig. 26); steep slopes in cloud forest at 1000-1950 m.

Colombia South America| Antioquia Colombia South America| Caquetá Colombia South America| Putumayo Colombia South America| Tolima Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Yaracuy Venezuela South America| Ecuador South America| Morona-Santiago Ecuador South America| Pastaza Ecuador South America| Santiago-Zamora Ecuador South America| Peru South America| Amazonas Peru South America| Huánuco Peru South America|