Roystonea borinquena
Encyclopedia
Roystonea borinquena, sometimes known as the Puerto Rico royal palm, is a species of palm
which is native to Hispaniola
, Puerto Rico
and the Virgin Islands
.
. The 1–1.4 m (3.3–4.6 ft) inflorescence
s bear creamy yellow male and female flowers; the anthers of the male flowers are bright purple. The fruit is single-seeded, about 13 millimetre (0.511811023622047 in) long and 10 mm (0.393700787401575 in) wide. The greenish-yellow immature fruit turn brownish-purple as they ripen.
Roystoneae. The placement Roystonea within the Arecoideae is uncertain; a phylogeny based on plastid
DNA failed to resolve the position of the genus within the Arecoideae. As of 2008, there appear to be no molecular phylogenetic studies of Roystonea and the relationship between R. borinquena and the rest of the genus is uncertain.
The species was first described by American
botanist Orator F. Cook
in 1901. For most of the 19th century, only two species of royal palms were generally recognised: Greater Antillean
royal palms were considered Oreodoxa regia (now Roystonea regia
), while Lesser Antillean
ones were considered O. oleracea (R. oleracea
). Due to problems with the way that the genus Oreodoxa had been applied by taxonomists, Cook proposed that the name Roystonea
(in honour of American general Roy Stone
) in 1900 be applied to the royal palms. The following year Cook described Roystonea borinquena.
, palma real puertorriqueña, manacla, palma caruta, palma de cerdos, palma de grana, palma de yagua, palma real, yagua and other names in Puerto Rico
and the Dominican Republic
.
s; and are thought to be insect-pollinated. Flowering individuals bear an average of 3.2 inflorescences per tree, and produce 6–12,000 fruit per inflorescence. Seeds germinate after 50–100 days. After six months, seedlings in full sunlight can reach a height of 30 centimetres (11.8 in); young trees can grow an average of 1 metres (3.3 ft) per year.
, Puerto Rico
(including Vieques) and St. Croix
, St. John
and Tortola
in the Virgin Islands
. In Hispaniola, R. borinquena is found at elevations below 800 metres (2,624.7 ft) above sea level, except in the driest regions. In Puerto Rico it is found in areas below 300 m (984.3 ft) above sea level, that receive 1250–2500 mm (49.2–98.4 in) of rainfall.
s have been reported to disperse the seeds of the species.
s due to their striking appearance; Roystonea borinquena is extensively planted as an ornamental in Puerto Rico. Its tolerance of air pollution
, its ability to grow in a variety of soil types, and the fact that it roots do not damage sidewalks, increase its utility for landscaping and street planting. Its timber is occasionally used for construction but is susceptible to termite attack. Leaves are used as thatch and the leaf sheaths can be laid flat and used to make the sides of buildings. The fruit are fed to pig
s and other livestock
and the flowers are visited by honey bee
s.
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
which is native to Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
.
Description
Roystonea borinquena is large palm which usually reaches a height of 12 to 18 m (39.4 to 59.1 ft), but individuals 26.4 m (86.6 ft) have been recorded. Stems are smooth and grey-brown to cinnamon-brown, and range from 25–70 cm (9.8–27.6 in) in diameter. Leaves are 2.4–3.7 m (7.9–12.1 ft) long, with short petioles and leaf sheathes 1–3 m (3.3–9.8 ft) long which encircles the upper portion of the stem, forming a crownshaftCrownshaft
An elongated circumferential leaf base formation present on some species of palm is called a crownshaft.The leaf bases of some pinnate leaved palms form a sheath at the top of the trunk surrounding the bud where all the subsequent leaves are formed.The crownshaft...
. The 1–1.4 m (3.3–4.6 ft) inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s bear creamy yellow male and female flowers; the anthers of the male flowers are bright purple. The fruit is single-seeded, about 13 millimetre (0.511811023622047 in) long and 10 mm (0.393700787401575 in) wide. The greenish-yellow immature fruit turn brownish-purple as they ripen.
Taxonomy
Roystonea is placed in the subfamily Arecoideae and the tribeTribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
Roystoneae. The placement Roystonea within the Arecoideae is uncertain; a phylogeny based on plastid
Plastid
Plastids are major organelles found in the cells of plants and algae. Plastids are the site of manufacture and storage of important chemical compounds used by the cell...
DNA failed to resolve the position of the genus within the Arecoideae. As of 2008, there appear to be no molecular phylogenetic studies of Roystonea and the relationship between R. borinquena and the rest of the genus is uncertain.
The species was first described by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
botanist Orator F. Cook
Orator F. Cook
Orator Fuller Cook was an American botanist, entomologist, and agronomist. Cook, born in Clyde, New York in 1867, graduated from Syracuse University in 1890. He worked for one year as an instructor at Syracuse. In 1891 Cook became a special agent of the New York State Colonization Society. He...
in 1901. For most of the 19th century, only two species of royal palms were generally recognised: Greater Antillean
Greater Antilles
The Greater Antilles are one of three island groups in the Caribbean. Comprising Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola , and Puerto Rico, the Greater Antilles constitute almost 90% of the land mass of the entire West Indies.-Greater Antilles in context :The islands of the Caribbean Sea, collectively known as...
royal palms were considered Oreodoxa regia (now Roystonea regia
Roystonea regia
Roystonea regia, commonly known as the Cuban royal palm, Florida royal palm, or simply the royal palm is a species of palm which is native to southern Florida, Mexico and parts of Central America and the northern Caribbean. It ranged into central Florida in the eighteenth century but in modern...
), while Lesser Antillean
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America...
ones were considered O. oleracea (R. oleracea
Roystonea oleracea
Roystonea oleracea, sometimes known as the Caribbean Royal Palm, palmiste, Imperial palm or cabbage palm, is a species of palm which is native to the Lesser Antilles, northern South America and Trinidad and Tobago.-Description:...
). Due to problems with the way that the genus Oreodoxa had been applied by taxonomists, Cook proposed that the name Roystonea
Roystonea
Roystonea is a genus of eleven species of monoecious palms, native to the Caribbean Islands, and the adjacent coasts of Florida, Central and South America. Commonly known as the royal palms, the genus was named for Roy Stone, a U.S. Army engineer...
(in honour of American general Roy Stone
Roy Stone
Roy Stone was a Union Army general during the American Civil War. He is most noted for his stubborn defense of the McPherson Farm during the Battle of Gettysburg.-Early life and family:...
) in 1900 be applied to the royal palms. The following year Cook described Roystonea borinquena.
Common names
Roystonea borinquena is known as the "Mountain-cabbage", "Puerto Rico royal palm" or simply "royal palm" in English, palmiste in HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, palma real puertorriqueña, manacla, palma caruta, palma de cerdos, palma de grana, palma de yagua, palma real, yagua and other names in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
.
Reproduction and growth
Young Roystonea borinquena trees may begin flowering when they are about seven years old, and they flower throughout the year. The flowers of Roystonea borinquena produce nectar and are visited by honey beeHoney bee
Honey bees are a subset of bees in the genus Apis, primarily distinguished by the production and storage of honey and the construction of perennial, colonial nests out of wax. Honey bees are the only extant members of the tribe Apini, all in the genus Apis...
s; and are thought to be insect-pollinated. Flowering individuals bear an average of 3.2 inflorescences per tree, and produce 6–12,000 fruit per inflorescence. Seeds germinate after 50–100 days. After six months, seedlings in full sunlight can reach a height of 30 centimetres (11.8 in); young trees can grow an average of 1 metres (3.3 ft) per year.
Distribution
Roystonea borinquena is native to HispaniolaHispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
(including Vieques) and St. Croix
Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Croix is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Formerly the Danish West Indies, they were sold to the United States by Denmark in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies of...
, St. John
Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint John is an island in the Caribbean Sea and a constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. St...
and Tortola
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
in the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
. In Hispaniola, R. borinquena is found at elevations below 800 metres (2,624.7 ft) above sea level, except in the driest regions. In Puerto Rico it is found in areas below 300 m (984.3 ft) above sea level, that receive 1250–2500 mm (49.2–98.4 in) of rainfall.
Ecology
Roystonea borinquena fruit are a fat-rich food source for birds. White-crowned PigeonWhite-crowned Pigeon
The White-crowned Pigeon is a species of bird in the family Columbidae . It inhabits the northern and central Caribbean islands and some places on the North and Central American mainland...
s have been reported to disperse the seeds of the species.
Uses
Royal palms are popular ornamental plantOrnamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
s due to their striking appearance; Roystonea borinquena is extensively planted as an ornamental in Puerto Rico. Its tolerance of air pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
, its ability to grow in a variety of soil types, and the fact that it roots do not damage sidewalks, increase its utility for landscaping and street planting. Its timber is occasionally used for construction but is susceptible to termite attack. Leaves are used as thatch and the leaf sheaths can be laid flat and used to make the sides of buildings. The fruit are fed to pig
Pig
A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
s and other livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
and the flowers are visited by honey bee
Honey bee
Honey bees are a subset of bees in the genus Apis, primarily distinguished by the production and storage of honey and the construction of perennial, colonial nests out of wax. Honey bees are the only extant members of the tribe Apini, all in the genus Apis...
s.