Acrocomia

Acrocomia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Monocots
(unranked):	Commelinids
Order:	Arecales
Family:	Arecaceae
Subfamily:	Arecoideae
Tribe:	Cocoseae
Genus:	Acrocomia Mart.
Synonyms[1]
Gastrococos Morales Acanthococos Barb.Rodr.

Acrocomia is a genus of palms which is native to the Neotropics, ranging from Mexico in the north, through Central America and the Caribbean, and through South America south to Argentina.^[1][2]

Description

Acrocomia is a genus of spiny, pinnate-leaved palms which range from large trees to small palms with short, subterranean stems.^[3]

The species bears branched inflorescences which are located among the leaves. The unisexual flowers; female flowers are born near the base of the inflorescence, while male flowers are borne towards the tips. Fruit are large, single-seeded, and vary in colour from yellow, to orange, to brown.^[3]

Species

1. Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq.) Lodd. ex R.Keith - Mexico, Central America, West Indies, northern South America
2. Acrocomia crispa (Kunth) C. Baker ex. Becc. - Cuba
3. Acrocomia emensis (Toledo) Lorenzi - Brazil
4. Acrocomia glaucescens Lorenzi - Brazil
5. Acrocomia hassleri (Barb.Rodr.) W.J.Hahn - Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraguay
6. Acrocomia intumescens Drude - Brazil
7. Acrocomia media O.F.Cook - Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
8. Acrocomia totai Mart. - Bolivia, Paraguay, northern Argentina, southern Brazil

References

1. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
2. Govaerts, R. & Dransfield, J. (2005). World Checklist of Palms: 1-223. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
3. Henderson, Andrew; Gloria Galeano; Rodrigo Bernal (1995). Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. pp. 45–50. ISBN 0-691-08537-4.