Satranala
| Satranala | |
|---|---|
| The botanist Carlos G. Boluda with a young Satranala decussilvae | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Arecales |
| Family: | Arecaceae |
| Subfamily: | Coryphoideae |
| Tribe: | Borasseae |
| Genus: | Satranala Beentje & J.Dransf. |
| Species: | S. decussilvae
|
| Binomial name | |
| Satranala decussilvae | |
Satranala decussilvae is a species of flowering plant in the Arecaceae family.[3] It is a palm endemic to Madagascar. It is the only species in the genus Satranala,[4] and is threatened by habitat loss. There are perhaps 200 mature individuals remaining.[1]
The fruit of these trees is roughly spherical to ovoid, around 5.6–5 centimetres (2.2–2.0 in) in diameter, with a purple-black shiny outer layer (epicarp), with the main part of the fruit (mesocarp) being dry and fleshy. The interior of the fruit has a highly sculptured endocarp (woody layer surrounding the seed) with sinuous wing-like structures, which has been suggested to be an adaptation to being swallowed and surviving the crop of elephant birds, an extinct group of large flightless birds formerly native to the island, as New Guinea palm fruit with similar features, belonging to the genera Ptychococcus, Brassiophoenix and Licuala are readily eaten by cassowaries who serve as their major seed dispersers.[5]
References
- ^ a b Rakotoarinivo, M.; Dransfield, J. (2012). "Satranala decussilvae". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012 e.T38696A2883367. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T38696A2883367.en. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
- ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
- ^ "Satranala decussilvae Beentje & J.Dransf". Plants of the World Online. The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. n.d. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
- ^ John Dransfield & H. J. Beentje (1995). "Satranala (Coryphoideae: Borasseae: Hyphaeninae), a new palm genus from Madagascar" (PDF). Kew Bulletin. 50 (1): 85–92. Bibcode:1995KewBu..50...85D. doi:10.2307/4114610. JSTOR 4114610. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-25.
- ^ Dransfield, John; Beentje, Henk (1995). The Palms of Madagascar. Kew, Victoria, Australia: Royal Botanic Gardens. pp. 21, 63–66. ISBN 978-0-947643-82-9.
We suggest the endocarp [of Satranala decussilvae] may be adapted to being swallowed by large birds (such as the now extinct Aepyornis) – a theory which, of course, cannot be tested. However, it is worth noting that very heavily sclerified and sculptured endocarps are found in Ptychococcus and Brassiophoenix (Uhl & Dransfield 1987) and in two species of Licuala (M. Forrero, pers. comm.) in New Guinea, where they appear to be adapted to dispersal by cassowaries, extant relatives of the extinct Madagascar elephant bird