| Field notes | Solitary, base with 50 cm high cone of closely-spaced, black, spiny, stilt-roots; trunk 10 m tall, 16 cm diam at base, 13 cm diam at apex. Leaves 7, crown shaft 200 cm long, olive green; petiole absent; rachis 342 cm, rounded below, ridged above, with 39 pinnae per side. Inflorescence buds 7 per node on tree with infructescence. Inflorescence buds 7 per node on two highest fertile nodes, all buds staminate (i.e. cut open). On third fertile node a central infructescence and 6 lateral staminate buds (3 per side). Staminate buds with coiled rachillae inside. Inflorescence at staminate anthesis collected from another tree. This with 5 buds per node. Flowers with numerous beetles (Curculionidae, Nitidulidae, Staphylinidae) hidden amongst flowers. Position of buds not determined, but all buds opened were staminate. Duplicates: AAU, K, NY, QCA, QCNE. |
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