Roystonea stellata

Roystonea stellata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Monocots
(unranked): Commelinids
Order: Arecales
Family: Arecaceae
Subfamily: Arecoideae
Tribe: Roystoneae
Genus: Roystonea
Species: R. stellata
Binomial name
Roystonea stellata
León

Roystonea stellata is a species of palm endemic to Yagruma terrace in the Maisí region of Guantánamo Province in eastern Cuba. The species is known from only a single collection made by French-born botanist Frère León in 1939, and may be extinct.

Description

Roystonea stellata is a large palm which reached heights of 15 metres (49 ft). The 95 cm (3.12 ft) inflorescences bears white male and female flowers. Fruit are 9.8–10.5 millimetres (0.39–0.41 in) long and 7.8–8.5 mm (0.31–0.33 in) wide, and black when ripe. The single known collection is not complete enough for a complete description.[2]

Status

It is unknown whether the species still exists, as no specimens were found in a 1990 survey of the only known habitat. While this has not yet been confirmed, R. stellata is possibly extinct.[3]

References

  1. Zona, S. (1998). "Roystonea stellata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.4. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  2. Zona, Scott (December 1996). "Roystonea (Arecaceae: Arecoideae)". Flora Neotropica 71: 1–35. no
  3. Zona, Scott; Raúl Verdecia; Angela Leiva Sánchez; Carl E. Lewis; Mike Maunder (2007). "The conservation status of West Indian palms (Arecaceae)". Oryx 41 (3): 300–05. doi:10.1017/S0030605307000404.


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