Reason for Listing: restricted distribution and infrequency of collection
Status: rare indigenous
Suggestion Action: Seeds should be collected from this tree and planted, just as those of the related Pacific fan palm Pritchardia pacifica are.Seedlings should be distributed to anyone who wants to grow them.
Indigenous to Tonga, also found in the Fijian Lau islands of Ogea Driki and Fulanga.It is restricted in Tonga to ‘Eua, where it confined to the rocky limestone cliffs on the southeast coast, reported from near sea level to 200 m elevation.At the base of the cliff it occurs on large limestone boulders.No uses are reported for this plant, but the similar and related Pritchardia pacifica is sometimes used as fans and the fruits are edible.
Medium-sized palm up to 8 m in height and 20 cm in diameter.Leaves simple, alternate; blade fan-shaped, up to 1 m long or more; surfaces waxy-glaucous, the lower side covered with lepidote scales conspicuously arranged in distinct, parallel lines; margins divided ¼ to 1/5th of its length into 50 to 70 stiff bifid segments; petiole not toothed.Inflorescence of a single, axillary, many-flowered panicle branched to 2 or 3 orders, the long peduncle equal to or longer than the leaves, drooping at maturity; the base covered with tubular peduncle bracts that closely sheath it, these becoming fibrous at the tip or not at all.Calyx of 3 connate sepals ca. 3 mm long, shallowly 3-lobed.Corolla of 3 petals ca. 5 mm long, forming a circumscissile cap over the soft connate base, deciduous at anthesis.Ovary superior, with recurved styles united at their base.Stamens 6, connate at the base, epipetalous.Fruit a 1-seeded, black globose berry 6–7 mm in diameter, often crowned with the persistent remains of abortive carpels and the style.
Distinguishable by its palm habit; large fan-shaped leaves with the 50 to 70 stiff, bifid segments on the margin; solitary panicles with the peduncle nearly as the leaves; and black globose fruits.
Development of the Consortium of Pacific Herbaria and several of the specimen databases have been
supported by National Science Foundation Grants (BRC 1057303,
ADBC 1304924
and ADBC1115116).
Data Usage Policy. Continued support provided by the Symbiota Support Hub, a domain of iDigBio (NSF Award #2027654).
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