Roystonea regia
Encyclopedia
Roystonea regia, commonly known as the Cuban royal palm, Florida royal palm, or simply the royal palm is a species of palm
which is native to southern Florida, Mexico and parts of Central America
and the northern Caribbean
. It ranged into central Florida in the eighteenth century but in modern times it is only known from tropical parts of south Florida. A large and attractive palm, it has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree. Although it is sometimes called R. elata, the conserved name
R. regia is now the correct name for the species. Populations in Cuba
and Florida
were long seen as separate species, but are now considered to belong to a single species.
Best known as an ornamental, R. regia is also used as a source of thatch, construction timber, and as a medicinal plant. The fruit is eaten by birds and bats (which disperse the seeds) and fed to livestock. Its flowers are visited by birds and bats, and it serves as a roosting site and food source for a variety of animals. Roystonea regia is the national tree of Cuba
, and has a religious role both in Santería
and Christianity, where it is used in Palm Sunday
observances.
. Trees have about 15 leaves which can be up to 4 m (13 ft) long. The flowers are white with pinkish anthers. The fruit are spheroid
to ellipsoid in shape, 8.9 – long and 7 – wide. They are green when immature, turning red and eventually purplish-black as they mature.
Root nodule
s containing Rhizobium
bacteria have been found on R. regia trees in India
. The presence of rhizobia
-containing root nodules is usually associated with nitrogen fixation
in legumes; this was the first record of root nodules in a monocotyledon
ous tree. Further evidence of nitrogen fixation was provided by the presence of nitrogenase
(an enzyme used in nitrogen fixation) and leghaemoglobin
, a compound which allows nitrogenase to function by reducing the oxygen concentration in the root nodule. In addition to evidence of nitrogen fixation, the nodules were also found to be producing indole acetic acid
, an important plant hormone
.
Arecoideae and the tribe
Roystoneae. The placement Roystonea within the Arecoideae is uncertain; a phylogeny
based on plastid
DNA failed to resolve the position of the genus within the Arecoideae. As of 2008, there appear to be no molecular phylogenetic studies of Roystonea and the relationship between R. regia and the rest of the genus is uncertain.
The species was first described by American
naturalist William Bartram
in 1791 as Palma elata based on trees growing in central Florida
. In 1816 German
botanist Carl Sigismund Kunth
described the species Oreodoxa regia based on collections made by Alexander von Humboldt
and Aimé Bonpland
in Cuba
. In 1825 German botanist Curt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel moved it to the genus Oenocarpus
and renamed it O. regius.
The genus Oreodoxa was proposed by German botanist Carl Ludwig Willdenow
in 1807 and applied by him to two species, O. acuminata (now known as Prestoea acuminata) and O. praemorsa (now Wettinia praemorsa). Although these species were transferred to other genera, the genus Oreodoxa continued to be applied to a variety of superficially similar species which were not, in fact, closely related. To address this problem, American botanist Orator F. Cook
created the genus Roystonea, which he named in honour of American general Roy Stone
, and renamed Kunth's species Roystonea regia.
Cook considered Floridian populations to be distinct from both the Cuba R. regia and the Puerto Rican
R. borinquena
, and he placed them in a new species, R. floridana, which is now considered a synonym of R. regia. In 1906 Charles Henry Wright described two new species based on collections from Georgetown
, British Guiana (now Guyana
) which he placed in the genus Euterpe
— E. jenmanii and E. ventricosa. Both species are now considered synonyms of R. regia. The name R. regia var. hondurensis was applied by Paul H. Allen
to Central American populations of the species. However, Scott Zona determined that they did not differ enough from Cuban populations to be considered a separate variety.
Based on the rules of botanical nomenclature
, the oldest properly published name for a species has priority over newer names. Bartram applied the Linnaean binomial
Palma elata to a "large, solitary palm with an ashen white trunk topped by a green leaf sheath [the crownshaft] and pinnate leaves" growing in central Florida. While no type collection is known, there are no other native palms that would fit Bartram's description. In 1946 Francis Harper
pointed out that Bartram's name was valid and proposed a new combination, Roystonea elata. Liberty Hyde Bailey
's use of the name in his 1949 revision of the genus, established its usage.
Harper's new combination immediately supplanted Cook's R. floridana, but there was disagreement as to whether Cuban and Floridian populations represented a single species or two species. Zona's revision of the genus concluded that they both belonged to the same species. According to the rules of botanical nomenclature, the correct name of the species should have been Roystonea elata. Zona pointed out, however, that the name R. regia (or Oreodoxa regia) has a history of use in horticulture that dated from at least 1838, and that the species had been propagated around the world under that name. Roystonea elata, on the other hand, had only been used since 1949, and was used much less widely. On that basis, Zona proposed that the name Roystonea regia should be conserved.
are called Florida royal palms. In Cuba, the tree is called the palma real or palma criollo. In India, where it is widely cultivated, it is called vakka.
Roystonea regia produces unisexual flowers
that are pollinated
by animals. European honey bee
s and bats are reported pollinators. Seeds are dispersed by birds and bats that feed upon the fruit.
Seed germination
is adjacent ligular—during germination, as the cotyledon
expands it only pushes a portion of the embryo out of the seed. As a result, the seedling develops adjacent to the seed. The embryo forms a ligule
, and the plumule
protrudes from this. Seedlings in cultivation are reported to begin producing a stem two years after germination, at the point where they produce their thirteenth leaf. Growth rates of seedlings averaged 4.2 cm (1.7 in) per year in Florida.
, Honduras
, Cuba
, the Cayman Islands
and The Bahamas
. It has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree.
William Bartram described the species from Lake Dexter, along the St. Johns River
in the area of modern Lake
and Volusia Counties
in central Florida, an area well north of its modern range. The reason for its contraction in range is uncertain—it has been suggested that a severe freeze in 1835 and 1894–95 eliminated northern populations, or that land clearing by settlers eliminated most populations of the tree.
s (Osteopilus septentriolalis), a non-native species, in Florida. In Panama
(where R. regia is introduced), its trunks are used as nesting sites by Yellow-crowned parrots (Amazona ochrocephala panamensis
). The flowers of R. regia are visited by pollen
-collecting bee
s and are considered a good source of nectar. Its pollen was also found in the stomachs of Phyllonycteris poeyi
, the Cuban Flower Bat (a pollen-feeder) and Monophyllus redmani
, Leach's Single Leaf Bat (a nectar-feeder). Artibeus jamaicensis, the Jamaican fruit bat
, and Myiozetetes similis, the Social Flycatcher
, feed on the fruit.
Roystonea regia is the host plant for the royal palm bug, Xylastodoris luteolus, in Florida. It also serves as a larval host plant for the butterflies Pyrrhocalles antiqua orientis and Asbolis capucinus in Cuba, and Brassolis astyra and B. sophorae in Brazil
. It is susceptible to bud rot caused by the oomycete Phytophthora palmivora
and by the fungus
Thielaviopsis paradoxa
.
The species is considered an invasive species
in secondary forest
in Panama
.
, and for that reason they are added to tifey, a Haiti
an drink, by Cubans of Haitian origin. They are also used as a treatment for diabetes
.
Fibres extracted from the leaf sheath of R. regia have been found to be comparable with sisal
and banana
fibres, but lower in density, making it a potentially useful source for the use in lightweight composite materials. An extract from R. regia fruit known as D-004 reduces benign prostate hyperplasia
(BPH) in rodents. D-004, is a mixture of fatty acid
s, is being studied as a potential alternative to finasteride
for the treatment of BPH.
it is associated primarily with Shango
or with his father Aggayú
. It also has symbolic importance in the Palo
faiths and the Abakuá
fraternity. In Roman Catholicism, R. regia plays an important role in Palm Sunday
observances.
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
which is native to southern Florida, Mexico and parts of Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
and the northern Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. It ranged into central Florida in the eighteenth century but in modern times it is only known from tropical parts of south Florida. A large and attractive palm, it has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree. Although it is sometimes called R. elata, the conserved name
Conserved name
A conserved name or nomen conservandum is a scientific name that has specific nomenclatural protection. Nomen conservandum is a Latin term, meaning a "name which should be conserved"...
R. regia is now the correct name for the species. Populations in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
were long seen as separate species, but are now considered to belong to a single species.
Best known as an ornamental, R. regia is also used as a source of thatch, construction timber, and as a medicinal plant. The fruit is eaten by birds and bats (which disperse the seeds) and fed to livestock. Its flowers are visited by birds and bats, and it serves as a roosting site and food source for a variety of animals. Roystonea regia is the national tree of Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, and has a religious role both in Santería
Santería
Santería is a syncretic religion of West African and Caribbean origin influenced by Roman Catholic Christianity, also known as Regla de Ocha, La Regla Lucumi, or Lukumi. Its liturgical language, a dialect of Yoruba, is also known as Lucumi....
and Christianity, where it is used in Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in all four Canonical Gospels. ....
observances.
Description
Roystonea regia is a large palm which reaches a height of 20 – tall, (with heights up to 34.5 m (113.2 ft) reported) and a stem diameter of about 47 centimetres (18.5 in). (K. F. Connor reports a maximum stem diameter of 61 cm (24 in).) The trunk is stout, very smooth and grey-white in colour with a characteristic bulge below a distinctive green crownshaftCrownshaft
An elongated circumferential leaf base formation present on some species of palm is called a crownshaft.The leaf bases of some pinnate leaved palms form a sheath at the top of the trunk surrounding the bud where all the subsequent leaves are formed.The crownshaft...
. Trees have about 15 leaves which can be up to 4 m (13 ft) long. The flowers are white with pinkish anthers. The fruit are spheroid
Spheroid
A spheroid, or ellipsoid of revolution is a quadric surface obtained by rotating an ellipse about one of its principal axes; in other words, an ellipsoid with two equal semi-diameters....
to ellipsoid in shape, 8.9 – long and 7 – wide. They are green when immature, turning red and eventually purplish-black as they mature.
Root nodule
Root nodule
Root nodules occur on the roots of plants that associate with symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Under nitrogen-limiting conditions, capable plants form a symbiotic relationship with a host-specific strain of bacteria known as rhizobia...
s containing Rhizobium
Rhizobium
Rhizobium is a genus of Gram-negative soil bacteria that fix nitrogen. Rhizobium forms an endosymbiotic nitrogen fixing association with roots of legumes and Parasponia....
bacteria have been found on R. regia trees in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. The presence of rhizobia
Rhizobia
Rhizobia are soil bacteria that fix nitrogen after becoming established inside root nodules of legumes . Rhizobia require a plant host; they cannot independently fix nitrogen...
-containing root nodules is usually associated with nitrogen fixation
Nitrogen fixation
Nitrogen fixation is the natural process, either biological or abiotic, by which nitrogen in the atmosphere is converted into ammonia . This process is essential for life because fixed nitrogen is required to biosynthesize the basic building blocks of life, e.g., nucleotides for DNA and RNA and...
in legumes; this was the first record of root nodules in a monocotyledon
Monocotyledon
Monocotyledons, also known as monocots, are one of two major groups of flowering plants that are traditionally recognized, the other being dicotyledons, or dicots. Monocot seedlings typically have one cotyledon , in contrast to the two cotyledons typical of dicots...
ous tree. Further evidence of nitrogen fixation was provided by the presence of nitrogenase
Nitrogenase
Nitrogenases are enzymes used by some organisms to fix atmospheric nitrogen gas . It is the only known family of enzymes that accomplish this process. Dinitrogen is quite inert because of the strength of its N-N triple bond...
(an enzyme used in nitrogen fixation) and leghaemoglobin
Leghemoglobin
Leghemoglobin is a nitrogen or oxygen carrier, because naturally occurring oxygen and nitrogen interact similarly with this protein; and a hemoprotein found in the nitrogen-fixing root nodules of leguminous plants. But nitrogen is necessary for the cycle to occur...
, a compound which allows nitrogenase to function by reducing the oxygen concentration in the root nodule. In addition to evidence of nitrogen fixation, the nodules were also found to be producing indole acetic acid
Indole-3-acetic acid
Indole-3-acetic acid, also known as IAA, is a heterocyclic compound that is a phytohormone called auxin. This colourless solid is native plant compound, potent and the most important auxin...
, an important plant hormone
Plant hormone
Plant hormones are chemicals that regulate plant growth, which, in the UK, are termed 'plant growth substances'. Plant hormones are signal molecules produced within the plant, and occur in extremely low concentrations. Hormones regulate cellular processes in targeted cells locally and, when moved...
.
Taxonomy
Roystonea is placed in the subfamilyFamily (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Arecoideae and the tribe
Tribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
Roystoneae. The placement Roystonea within the Arecoideae is uncertain; a phylogeny
Phylogenetics
In biology, phylogenetics is the study of evolutionary relatedness among groups of organisms , which is discovered through molecular sequencing data and morphological data matrices...
based on plastid
Plastid
Plastids are major organelles found in the cells of plants and algae. Plastids are the site of manufacture and storage of important chemical compounds used by the cell...
DNA failed to resolve the position of the genus within the Arecoideae. As of 2008, there appear to be no molecular phylogenetic studies of Roystonea and the relationship between R. regia and the rest of the genus is uncertain.
The species was first described by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
naturalist William Bartram
William Bartram
William Bartram was an American naturalist. The son of Ann and John Bartram, William Bartram and his twin sister Elizabeth were born in Kingsessing, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia. As a boy, he accompanied his father on many of his travels, to the Catskill Mountains, the New Jersey Pine Barrens,...
in 1791 as Palma elata based on trees growing in central Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. In 1816 German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
botanist Carl Sigismund Kunth
Carl Sigismund Kunth
Carl Sigismund Kunth , also Karl Sigismund Kunth or anglicized as Charles Sigismund Kunth, was a German botanist...
described the species Oreodoxa regia based on collections made by Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt...
and Aimé Bonpland
Aimé Bonpland
Aimé Jacques Alexandre Bonpland was a French explorer and botanist.Bonpland's real name was Goujaud, and he was born in La Rochelle, a coastal city in France. After serving as a surgeon in the French army, and studying under J. N...
in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. In 1825 German botanist Curt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel moved it to the genus Oenocarpus
Oenocarpus
Oenocarpus is a genus of pinnate-leaved palms native to Trinidad, southern Central and tropical South America. With nine species and one natural hybrid, the genus is distributed from Costa Rica and Trinidad in the north to Brazil and Bolivia in the south.Common names in their native range are...
and renamed it O. regius.
The genus Oreodoxa was proposed by German botanist Carl Ludwig Willdenow
Carl Ludwig Willdenow
Carl Ludwig Willdenow was a German botanist, pharmacist, and plant taxonomist. He is considered one of the founders of phytogeography, the study of the geographic distribution of plants...
in 1807 and applied by him to two species, O. acuminata (now known as Prestoea acuminata) and O. praemorsa (now Wettinia praemorsa). Although these species were transferred to other genera, the genus Oreodoxa continued to be applied to a variety of superficially similar species which were not, in fact, closely related. To address this problem, American botanist Orator F. Cook
Orator F. Cook
Orator Fuller Cook was an American botanist, entomologist, and agronomist. Cook, born in Clyde, New York in 1867, graduated from Syracuse University in 1890. He worked for one year as an instructor at Syracuse. In 1891 Cook became a special agent of the New York State Colonization Society. He...
created the genus Roystonea, which he named in honour of American general Roy Stone
Roy Stone
Roy Stone was a Union Army general during the American Civil War. He is most noted for his stubborn defense of the McPherson Farm during the Battle of Gettysburg.-Early life and family:...
, and renamed Kunth's species Roystonea regia.
Cook considered Floridian populations to be distinct from both the Cuba R. regia and the Puerto Rican
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
R. borinquena
Roystonea borinquena
Roystonea borinquena, sometimes known as the Puerto Rico royal palm, is a species of palm which is native to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.-Description:...
, and he placed them in a new species, R. floridana, which is now considered a synonym of R. regia. In 1906 Charles Henry Wright described two new species based on collections from Georgetown
Georgetown, Guyana
Georgetown, estimated population 239,227 , is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at . The city serves...
, British Guiana (now Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
) which he placed in the genus Euterpe
Euterpe (genus)
Euterpe is a genus of palm tree, containing eight species that are native to Central and South America, from Belize southward to Brazil, Peru and Argentina. These palms grow mainly in swamps and floodplains....
— E. jenmanii and E. ventricosa. Both species are now considered synonyms of R. regia. The name R. regia var. hondurensis was applied by Paul H. Allen
Paul H. Allen
Paul Hamilton Allen was an American botanist noted for his work on the ecology of Central America, orchid systematics and economically important species including bananas. He was married to the former Dorothy Osdieck of Kirkwood, Missouri....
to Central American populations of the species. However, Scott Zona determined that they did not differ enough from Cuban populations to be considered a separate variety.
Based on the rules of botanical nomenclature
Botanical nomenclature
Botanical nomenclature is the formal, scientific naming of plants. It is related to, but distinct from taxonomy. Plant taxonomy is concerned with grouping and classifying plants; botanical nomenclature then provides names for the results of this process. The starting point for modern botanical...
, the oldest properly published name for a species has priority over newer names. Bartram applied the Linnaean binomial
Linnaean taxonomy
Linnaean taxonomy can mean either of two related concepts:# the particular form of biological classification set up by Carl Linnaeus, as set forth in his Systema Naturæ and subsequent works...
Palma elata to a "large, solitary palm with an ashen white trunk topped by a green leaf sheath [the crownshaft] and pinnate leaves" growing in central Florida. While no type collection is known, there are no other native palms that would fit Bartram's description. In 1946 Francis Harper
Francis Harper (biologist)
Francis Harper was an American naturalist. His research included studies of the Okefenokee Swamp and fieldwork in the north eastern United States and in northern Canada, and he also studied the 18th century American naturalists John and William Bartram...
pointed out that Bartram's name was valid and proposed a new combination, Roystonea elata. Liberty Hyde Bailey
Liberty Hyde Bailey
Liberty Hyde Bailey was an American horticulturist, botanist and cofounder of the American Society for Horticultural Science.-Biography:...
's use of the name in his 1949 revision of the genus, established its usage.
Harper's new combination immediately supplanted Cook's R. floridana, but there was disagreement as to whether Cuban and Floridian populations represented a single species or two species. Zona's revision of the genus concluded that they both belonged to the same species. According to the rules of botanical nomenclature, the correct name of the species should have been Roystonea elata. Zona pointed out, however, that the name R. regia (or Oreodoxa regia) has a history of use in horticulture that dated from at least 1838, and that the species had been propagated around the world under that name. Roystonea elata, on the other hand, had only been used since 1949, and was used much less widely. On that basis, Zona proposed that the name Roystonea regia should be conserved.
Common names
In cultivation, Roystonea regia is called the Cuban royal palm or simply the royal palm. Populations native to FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
are called Florida royal palms. In Cuba, the tree is called the palma real or palma criollo. In India, where it is widely cultivated, it is called vakka.
Reproduction and growth
Gonochorism
In biology, gonochorism or unisexualism describes sexually reproducing species in which individuals have just one of at least two distinct sexes. The term is most often used with animals . The sex of an individual may change during its lifetime, this can for example be found in parrotfish...
that are pollinated
Pollination
Pollination is the process by which pollen is transferred in plants, thereby enabling fertilisation and sexual reproduction. Pollen grains transport the male gametes to where the female gamete are contained within the carpel; in gymnosperms the pollen is directly applied to the ovule itself...
by animals. European honey bee
European honey bee
The Western honey bee or European honey bee is a species of honey bee. The genus Apis is Latin for "bee", and mellifera comes from Latin melli- "honey" and ferre "to bear"—hence the scientific name means "honey-bearing bee"...
s and bats are reported pollinators. Seeds are dispersed by birds and bats that feed upon the fruit.
Seed germination
Germination
Germination is the process in which a plant or fungus emerges from a seed or spore, respectively, and begins growth. The most common example of germination is the sprouting of a seedling from a seed of an angiosperm or gymnosperm. However the growth of a sporeling from a spore, for example the...
is adjacent ligular—during germination, as the cotyledon
Cotyledon
A cotyledon , is a significant part of the embryo within the seed of a plant. Upon germination, the cotyledon may become the embryonic first leaves of a seedling. The number of cotyledons present is one characteristic used by botanists to classify the flowering plants...
expands it only pushes a portion of the embryo out of the seed. As a result, the seedling develops adjacent to the seed. The embryo forms a ligule
Ligule
A ligule — is a thin outgrowth at the junction of leaf and leafstalk of many grasses and sedges or a strap-shaped corolla, such as that of a ray floret in plants in the daisy family....
, and the plumule
Seedling
thumb|Monocot and dicot seedlingsA seedling is a young plant sporophyte developing out of a plant embryo from a seed. Seedling development starts with germination of the seed. A typical young seedling consists of three main parts: the radicle , the hypocotyl , and the cotyledons...
protrudes from this. Seedlings in cultivation are reported to begin producing a stem two years after germination, at the point where they produce their thirteenth leaf. Growth rates of seedlings averaged 4.2 cm (1.7 in) per year in Florida.
Distribution
Roystonea regia is found in southern Florida, north-central and south-east Mexico, BelizeBelize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
, Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, the Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
and The Bahamas
The Bahamas
The Bahamas , officially the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is a nation consisting of 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 islets . It is located in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba and Hispaniola , northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States...
. It has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree.
William Bartram described the species from Lake Dexter, along the St. Johns River
St. Johns River
The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At long, it winds through or borders twelve counties, three of which are the state's largest. The drop in elevation from the headwaters to the mouth is less than ;...
in the area of modern Lake
Lake County, Florida
Lake County is a county located in the state of Florida, United States. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 210,528. The Census Bureau estimated the population in 2008 to be 307,243. Its county seat is Tavares...
and Volusia Counties
Volusia County, Florida
Volusia County is a county located in the state of Florida. The U.S. Census Bureau 2010 official county's population was 494,593 . Its county seat is DeLand, and its most populous city is currently Deltona....
in central Florida, an area well north of its modern range. The reason for its contraction in range is uncertain—it has been suggested that a severe freeze in 1835 and 1894–95 eliminated northern populations, or that land clearing by settlers eliminated most populations of the tree.
Ecology
The leaves of Roystonea regia are used as roosting sites by Eumops floridanus, the Florida bonneted bat, and is used as a retreat for Cuban tree frogCuban tree frog
Osteopilus septentrionalis, commonly known as the Cuban tree frog, is an amphibian native to the Caribbean region of the Western Hemisphere. It is the largest tree frog of North America...
s (Osteopilus septentriolalis), a non-native species, in Florida. In Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
(where R. regia is introduced), its trunks are used as nesting sites by Yellow-crowned parrots (Amazona ochrocephala panamensis
Yellow-crowned Amazon
The Yellow-crowned Amazon or Yellow-crowned Parrot , is a species of parrot, native to the tropical South America and Panama. The taxonomy is highly complex, and the Yellow-headed and Yellow-naped Amazon are sometimes considered subspecies of the Yellow-crowned Amazon...
). The flowers of R. regia are visited by pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
-collecting bee
Bee
Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s and are considered a good source of nectar. Its pollen was also found in the stomachs of Phyllonycteris poeyi
Cuban Flower Bat
The Cuban Flower Bat , also called Poey's Flower Bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.-Description:...
, the Cuban Flower Bat (a pollen-feeder) and Monophyllus redmani
Leach's Single Leaf Bat
The Leach's Single Leaf Bat is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.-References:...
, Leach's Single Leaf Bat (a nectar-feeder). Artibeus jamaicensis, the Jamaican fruit bat
Jamaican fruit bat
The Jamaican, Common or Mexican fruit bat is a fruit bat native to Central and South America, as well as the Greater and many of the Lesser Antilles. It is also an uncommon resident of the Southern Bahamas...
, and Myiozetetes similis, the Social Flycatcher
Social Flycatcher
The Social Flycatcher and Vermilion-crowned Flycatcher are passerine birds from the Americas, a member of the large tyrant flycatcher family ....
, feed on the fruit.
Roystonea regia is the host plant for the royal palm bug, Xylastodoris luteolus, in Florida. It also serves as a larval host plant for the butterflies Pyrrhocalles antiqua orientis and Asbolis capucinus in Cuba, and Brassolis astyra and B. sophorae in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. It is susceptible to bud rot caused by the oomycete Phytophthora palmivora
Phytophthora palmivora
Phytophthora palmivora causes bud-rot of palms, fruit-rot or kole-roga of coconut and arecanut. These are among the most serious diseases caused by fungi and moulds in South India. It occurs almost every year in Malnad, Mysore, North & South Kanara, Malabar and other areas. Similar diseases of...
and by the fungus
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
Thielaviopsis paradoxa
Ceratocystis paradoxa
Ceratocystis paradoxa is a plant pathogen able to cause disease in many species.- External links :* *...
.
The species is considered an invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
in secondary forest
Secondary forest
A secondary forest is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a major disturbance such as fire, insect infestation, timber harvest or windthrow, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident...
in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
.
Uses
Roystonea regia has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental. The seed is used as a source of oil and for livestock feed. Leaves are used for thatching and the wood for construction. The roots are used as a diureticDiuretic
A diuretic provides a means of forced diuresis which elevates the rate of urination. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics increase the excretion of water from bodies, although each class does so in a distinct way.- Medical uses :...
, and for that reason they are added to tifey, a Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an drink, by Cubans of Haitian origin. They are also used as a treatment for diabetes
Diabetes mellitus
Diabetes mellitus, often simply referred to as diabetes, is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the body does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced...
.
Fibres extracted from the leaf sheath of R. regia have been found to be comparable with sisal
Sisal
Sisal is an agave that yields a stiff fibre traditionally used in making twine, rope and also dartboards. The term may refer either to the plant or the fibre, depending on context...
and banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
fibres, but lower in density, making it a potentially useful source for the use in lightweight composite materials. An extract from R. regia fruit known as D-004 reduces benign prostate hyperplasia
Benign prostatic hyperplasia
Benign prostatic hyperplasia also known as benign prostatic hypertrophy , benign enlargement of the prostate , and adenofibromyomatous hyperplasia, refers to the increase in size of the prostate....
(BPH) in rodents. D-004, is a mixture of fatty acid
Fatty acid
In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with a long unbranched aliphatic tail , which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have a chain of an even number of carbon atoms, from 4 to 28. Fatty acids are usually derived from...
s, is being studied as a potential alternative to finasteride
Finasteride
Finasteride is a synthetic antiandrogen that inhibits type II 5-alpha reductase, the enzyme that converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone...
for the treatment of BPH.
Religious significance
Roystonea regia plays an important role in popular religion in Cuba. In SanteríaSantería
Santería is a syncretic religion of West African and Caribbean origin influenced by Roman Catholic Christianity, also known as Regla de Ocha, La Regla Lucumi, or Lukumi. Its liturgical language, a dialect of Yoruba, is also known as Lucumi....
it is associated primarily with Shango
Shango
In the Yorùbá religion, Sàngó is perhaps one of the most popular Orisha; also known as the god of fire, lightning and thunder...
or with his father Aggayú
Aganju
In Yoruba mythology, Aganju is the Orisha of volcanos, the wilderness, and the river. He is associated with Saint Christopher.As the third Òrìsà said to have come to earth, Aganjú is an Òrìsà of great antiquity. Lukumi followers of this religion believe that Aganjú is a force that, like the sun...
. It also has symbolic importance in the Palo
Palo (religion)
Palo, or Las Reglas de Congo are a group of closely related religions or denominations, which developed in the Spanish colonies of the Caribbean amongst Central African slaves of mostly Bantu ancestry...
faiths and the Abakuá
Abakuá
Abakua or Abakuá is an Afro-Cuban men's initiatory fraternity, or secret society, which originated from fraternal associations in the Cross River region of southeastern Nigeria and southwestern Cameroon...
fraternity. In Roman Catholicism, R. regia plays an important role in Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in all four Canonical Gospels. ....
observances.