| Field notes | Canopy palm. Trunk10 m high, white-brown. Cbh 52.5 cm. Internodes 16 cm. Leaf scars visible as obscure protrusions. Stiltroots about 1 m long and 5 cm in diameter. Leaves pinnate. Closed crown shaft, about 1 m long. Green on outside, cream coloured inside. Petiole 85 cm, green. Rachis 330 cm, green. 15 groups of pinnae on each side of rachis. 4-5 wedgeshaped, unequal sized pinnae in each group. Arranged in fan shape according to size, with longest pinna in basal position and shortest pinna in distal position within groups. Longest pinnae in central groups 90 cm long, shortest pinnae 45 cm, 10-20 cm wide. Inflorescence bud infrafoliar, ca. 1.5 m below basal crown shaft. One inflorescence bud pr. internode. Vernacular name: Ambakai (Shuar). Uses: Heart edible and also used as medicine against bile. Fruits edible. Trunk used in construction as posts and planks, to make spears, temporary knives, blow dart guns, bows and beds, as well as for combustion. Edible larvae can be collected from rotting stem. Leaves used for thatch and to make christmas and easter decorations. |
This record