Bactris campestris
Bactris campestris | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Arecales |
Family: | Arecaceae |
Genus: | Bactris |
Species: | B. campestris
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Binomial name | |
Bactris campestris | |
Synonyms | |
Bactris leptocarpa |
Bactris campestris is a small (1–5 m tall) spiny palm which grows in multi-stemmed clumps in savannas and low forests in northern South America from Colombia to the Guianas, Trinidad and Tobago, and northern Brazil.
Description
Bactris campestris grows in small, multi-stemmed clumps. The stems, which are 1–5 metres (3 ft 3 in – 16 ft 5 in) tall and 3–4 centimetres (1.2–1.6 in) in diameter, are often sheathed by the remains of old leaf bases. Stems usually bear between two and five leaves which are covered with flattened greyish-brown spines 2–4 centimetres (0.79–1.57 in) in length. The leaf sheath and petiole are densely covered with spines; those on the rachis are less dense and grow mostly on the lower surface. The leaf sheath is 24–50 centimetres (9.4–19.7 in) long, the petiole 15–90 centimetres (5.9–35.4 in) and the rachis 60–110 centimetres (24–43 in). Each leaf consists of 17 to 32 leaflets which clustered in groups of two to five. The largest of the leaflets are 25–52 centimetres (9.8–20.5 in) long and 1.5–5 centimetres (0.59–1.97 in) broad.[2]: 42
The inflorescence consists of a 13–20 centimetres (5.1–7.9 in)-long peduncle and 1–6 centimetres (0.39–2.36 in)-long rachis, off of which branches between eight and 39 rachillae 5–15 centimetres (2.0–5.9 in) long. The rachillae bear male and female flowers. Female flowers grow in triplets, with one female flower flanked by two male flowers. Elsewhere along the rachillae, male flowers grow either singly or in pairs. The male flowers are 3–5 millimetres (0.12–0.20 in) long while the female flowers are 3–3.5 millimetres (0.12–0.14 in) in length. The fruit are red or orange-red in colour, 0.5–1 centimetre (0.20–0.39 in) in diameter.[2]: 42–45
Taxonomy
As a member of the genus
The species was first described in 1837 by German
Distribution
Bactris campestris ranges from eastern Colombia, across Venezuela, north to Trinidad and Tobago, across Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, and into northern Brazil. It grows in open habitats—generally savannas and low-stature forests—on white sands, at low elevations.[2]: 44
Uses
The palm heart of B. campestris is reportedly used to treat snake bites.[2]: 45
References
- ^ "Bactris campestris". Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Archived from the original on 2013-08-02. Retrieved 2007-09-08.
- ^ JSTOR 4393893.
- JSTOR 25070242.
- ^ Eiserhardt, Wolf L.; Jean-Christophe Pintaud; Conny Asmussen-Lange; William J. Hahn; Rodrigo Bernal; Henrik Balslev; Finn Borchsenius (2011). "Phylogeny and divergence times of Bactridinae (Arecaceae, Palmae) based on plastid and nuclear DNA sequences". Taxon. 60 (2): 485–498.