| Field notes | Caespitose, 2 stems and a sucker. Stems to 2.5 m tall, 4 cm diam, internodes 6-8 cm, covered with black spines to 13 cm long, pointing in all directions. Leaves 4, distichous; sheath 46 cm, closed for 3 cm, densely covered with black spines to 10 cm long; petiole 10 cm, rounded below, channeled-flat above, densely spiny; rachis 82 cm, below with many spines to 7 cm, especially towards base; pinnae 57 per side, in groups of 2-11, the lower in each group almost erect, the upper almost horizontal; basal pinnae 18 x 0.7 cm, middle pinnae 32 x 2.2 cm, apical pinnae 16 x 4 cm; all pinnae covered with yellow, hairlike spinules, midrib above with a row of fine, to 1 cm long spines. Inflorescence bud interfoliar, erect; prophyll 34 x 2 cm, cream at base, wilting brown-chartaceous from the top, with spines apically on abaxial side, these to 1 cm; peduncular bract 85 cm long, light green, 1 cm diam at base, 2 cm diam near apex, with a 1 cm long solid point apically. Inflorescence at staminate anthesis: prophyll 25 x 3 cm, densely spiny abaxially in upper 2/3, smooth adaxially; peduncular bract 100 cm, erect, tubular below, flattened above, 6 cm wide, with few spines abaxially, apex with a 2 cm long solid point; peduncle 50 cm, spiny; rachis 65 cm, light green to yellow, unarmed; rachillae 65, the upper 10 staminate, the lower 22 cm long, light green, flattened, 1 cm wide at base, with up to 6 pistillate flowers on the basal 6 cm, staminate above, 1 mm thick. Inflorescence past pistillate anthesis: prophyll 25 cm long; peduncular bract 89 cm long, the lower 24 cm tubular, light green, the upper 56 cm brown-chartaceous, hanging down, with few spines to 2 cm abaxially; peduncle 56 cm, spiny; rachis 30 cm, green, unarmed; rachillae 59, the upper 15 staminate, wilting, the lower 20 cm long, with 5 pistillate flowers on the basal 8 cm, in this part green, flattened, 1 cm wide, distal part wilting, 1 mm diam. Infructescence with almost mature fruits interfoliar, recurving; prophyll lacking; peduncular bract 105 cm long, tubular and brown for 45 cm, upper 50 cm flat, sparsely spiny hanging down; peduncle 85 cm, spiny; rachis 34 cm, green, unarmed; rachillae 43 + 7 wilted, staminate ones, the basal to 15 cm long, with up to 3 fruits on the basal 7-9 cm. Fruits nearly white, becoming brown and verrucose from the apex, globose, 27-29 mm diam. |
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