Latania | |
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Red latan palm | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Arecales |
Family: | Arecaceae |
Tribe: | Borasseae |
Genus: | Latania Comm.exJuss. |
Type species | |
Latania lontaroides
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Synonyms[1] | |
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Latania, commonly known as latan palmorlatania palm, is a genusofflowering plant in the palm tree family, native to the Mascarene Islands in the western Indian Ocean.[1][2]
The genus contains three species, one from each of the three major islands (including islets) in the chain. All species have been ranked as Endangered by the IUCN.[3]
Image | Leaves | Common Name | Scientific name | Native Distribution |
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blue latan palm, latanier de l'Ile Ronde | Latania loddigesii Mart. | Mauritius | ||
red latan palm, latanier de la Réunion | Latania lontaroides (Gaertn.) H.E.Moore | Réunion | ||
yellow latan palm, latanier de Rodrigues | Latania verschaffeltii Lem. | Rodrigues Island |
Latan palms are large, single-stemmed fan palms with separate male and female plants (dioecy); when the leaves fall, they leave scars on the trunks. Male flowers are small, in clusters, and emerge from within leathery bracts on the catkin-like inflorescences. Female flowers are larger, solitary and not concealed within bracts. The fruits contain 1-3 pyrenes, which are seeds enclosed within woody endocarps.[4] The endocarps have sculpted surfaces and the three species are readily distinguished from their pyrenes.[5]
Latania |
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