Arecaceae FAMILY Critically Endangered

Saribus jeanneneyi

Edibility

1/5

Medicinal

0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Saribus jeanneneyi is a single-stemmed, evergreen palm with an unbranched trunk up to 10 metres tall and 15cm in diameter; the trunk is topped by a crown of around 15 fan-shaped leaves with petioles around 135cm wide and leaf blades around 100cm across. The edible inner heart of the apical bud was at one time harvested intesively as a source of food. Since harvesting this bud inevitably means the death of the plant, the population of this species was almost wped out. Saribus jeanneneyi was intensively harvested for its edible apical bud in the nineteenth century, reducing a formerly sizeable population to its current state in the wild of just one mature individual and some immature plants. The plant is classified as 'Critically Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2020)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical

Native RangeWestern Pacific - southern New Caledonia

HabitatAn understorey to canopy tree growing in dense humid forest on soils derived from ultramafic rocks; at elevations from 200 - 250 metres[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].