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Syagrus (plant)

For other uses, see Syagrus.

Syagrus is a genus of Arecaceae (palms), native to South America, with one species endemic to the Lesser Antilles.[3] The genus is closely related to the Cocos, or coconut genus, and many Syagrus species produce edible seeds similar to the coconut.

Syagrus
Syagrus romanzoffiana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Arecales
Family: Arecaceae
Subfamily: Arecoideae
Tribe: Cocoseae
Subtribe: Attaleinae
Genus: Syagrus
Mart.[1]
Synonyms[2]
  • Arecastrum (Drude) Becc.
  • Arikury Becc.
  • Arikuryroba Barb.Rodr.
  • Barbosa Becc.
  • Chrysallidosperma H.E.Moore
  • Glaziova Devansaye, nom. illeg.
  • Langsdorffia Raddi
  • Lytocaryum Toledo
  • Microcoelum Burret & Potztal
  • Platenia H.Karst.
  • Rhyticocos Becc.

Description

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Palms in this genus usually have solitary stems; clustered stems are less common, and a few are stolon-like subterranean. The stems are normally spineless, but some species have spiny leaf sheaths or spines. Those species that have upright trunks grow 2–36 metres (7–118 ft) tall with stems that are 6–35 centimetres (2.4–13.8 in) in diameter.[4]

The leaves of all but one species, S. smithii, are pinnately compound. Leaf sheaths are split along their entire length, and consequently, crownshafts are not present in this genus. The transition from the leaf sheath to the petiole can be gradual and difficult to identify, but in species where they can be distinguished, leaf sheaths are 2.5–180 cm (1–71 in) long and the petioles are 0–30 cm (0–12 in).[4]

The inflorescences are unbranched or branch once; a single hybrid, S. × lacerdamourae, occasionally shows second-order branching, and emerge from between the leaves. They are monoecious, with both male and female flowers borne in the same inflorescence. The fruit are drupes, which vary in colour from green to orange to brown. They range in size from 1.2 to 1.9 cm (0.47 to 0.75 in) in length, and 0.7 to 4.5 cm (0.28 to 1.77 in) in diameter.[4]

Taxonomy

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Cocos nucifera

Syagrus

Lytocaryum (nested within Syagrus)

Simplified phylogeny of members of the subtribe Attaleinae, based on seven WRKY gene loci.[5]

Syagrus has been placed in the subfamily Arecoideae, the tribe Cocoseae and the subtribe Attaleinae, together with the genera Allagoptera, Attalea, Beccariophoenix, Butia, Cocos, Jubaea, Jubaeopsis, Parajubaea, and Voanioala.[6]

The genus Lytocaryum is now included in Syagrus.[7] It has been treated as a distinct genus, differentiated only by abundant tomentum, strongly versatile anthers, and slight differences in the pericarp.[8]

Species

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As of May 2024, Plants of the World Online accepted the following species and hybrids:[2]

Hybrids

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Formerly placed here

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  • Butia campicola (Barb.Rodr.) Noblick (as S. campicola (Barb.Rodr.) Becc.)
  • Butia capitata (Mart.) Becc. (as S. capitata (Mart.) Glassman)
  • Butia eriospatha (Mart. ex Drude) Becc. (as S. eriospatha (Mart. ex Drude) Glassman)
  • Butia paraguayensis (Barb.Rodr.) L.H.Bailey (as S. paraguayensis (Barb.Rodr.) Glassman)
  • Butia yatay (Mart.) Becc. (as S. dyerana (Barb. Rodr.) Becc. and S. yatay (Mart.) Glassman)

Distribution

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Syagrus is an almost entirely South American genus. The only non-South American species, S. amara, is endemic to five islands in the Lesser Antilles. The genus is found from sea level to elevations of 1,800 metres (5,900 ft)above sea level.[4]

Ecology

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S. coronata nuts are the favored food of Lear's macaw, whose bill size and shape are particularly adapted to crack them.[10]

Syagrus species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Batrachedra nuciferae (recorded on S. coronae) and Paysandisia archon (recorded on S. romanzoffiana).

Cultivation and uses

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Syagrus weddellianum is a commonly potted plant throughout Europe. It prefers shade and rich, friable, quickly draining soil with some acidity.[11]

References

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  1. ^ Martius, Palmarum Familia 18. 1824. Type S. cocoides
  2. ^ a b "Syagrus Mart." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
  3. ^ Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  4. ^ a b c d Noblick, Larry R. (2017-02-01). "A revision of the genus Syagrus (Arecaceae)". Phytotaxa. 294 (1): 1. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.294.1.1. ISSN 1179-3163.
  5. ^ Meerow, Alan W.; Larry Noblick; James W. Borrone; Thomas L. P. Couvreur; Margarita Mauro-Herrera; William J. Hahn; David N. Kuhn; Kyoko Nakamura; Nora H. Oleas; Raymond J. Schnell (2009). Joly, Simon (ed.). "Phylogenetic Analysis of Seven WRKY Genes across the Palm Subtribe Attaleinae (Arecaceae) Identifies Syagrus as Sister Group of the Coconut". PLOS ONE. 4 (10): e7353. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.7353M. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0007353. PMC 2752195. PMID 19806212.
  6. ^ Dransfield, John; Natalie W. Uhl; Conny B. Asmussen; William J. Baker; Madeline M. Harley; Carl E. Lewis (2005). "A New Phylogenetic Classification of the Palm Family, Arecaceae". Kew Bulletin. 60 (4): 559–69. JSTOR 25070242.
  7. ^ Noblick, Larry R.; Meerow, Alan W. (2015). "The Transfer of the Genus Lytocaryum to Syagrus". Palms. 59: 57–62.
  8. ^ Uhl, Natalie W. and Dransfield, John (1987) Genera Palmarum - A classification of palms based on the work of Harold E. Moore. Lawrence, Kansas: Allen Press. ISBN 0-935868-30-5 / ISBN 978-0-935868-30-2
  9. ^ Sant'Anna-Santos, Bruno Francisco; Carvalho, Luiz Fernando Lima; Soffiatti, Patricia (2023-07-13). "A New Rupicolous Palm from the Campos Rupestres, Minas Gerais, Brazil". Edinburgh Journal of Botany. 80: 1–15. doi:10.24823/ejb.2023.1974. ISSN 1474-0036.
  10. ^ Yamashita, Carlos; de Paula Valle, Mauro (1993). "On the linkage between Anodorhynchus macaws and palm nuts, and the extinction of the Glaucous Macaw". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 113: 53–60.
  11. ^ Riffle, Robert L. and Craft, Paul (2003) An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms. Portland: Timber Press. ISBN 0-88192-558-6 / ISBN 978-0-88192-558-6
  • Jones, D. L. (2000). Palms in Australia. Reed Books.
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