Sabinaria
| Sabinaria | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Arecales |
| Family: | Arecaceae |
| Subfamily: | Coryphoideae |
| Tribe: | Cryosophileae |
| Genus: | Sabinaria R.Bernal & Galeano |
| Species: | S. magnifica
|
| Binomial name | |
| Sabinaria magnifica | |
Sabinaria magnifica is a species of palm tree and the only member of the genus Sabinaria. It is native to the Darién Gap on the border between Colombia and Panama.
Description
Sabinaria magnifica is a single-stemmed palm tree with palmately-compound leaves. The trunk is 1–6 metres (3–20 ft) tall and 9–12 centimetres (4–5 in) in diameter. Leaves are borne at the end of a long petiole - the combined length of the leaf sheath and petiole averages 319 centimetres (126 in). Trees bear 20 to 35 leaves which are between 1.4 and 1.6 metres (5 and 5 ft) in diameter.[1] The leaves are deeply divided in two almost to the base of the leaf blade, giving a butterfly-like appearance.[2]
Unlike other members of the Crysophileae (which tend to have bisexual flowers), S. magnifica is monoecious - it produces both male and female flowers. The male flowers are borne on the ends of the inflorescence while the female flowers are closer to the base and are surrounded by large bracts.[2]
Taxonomy
| |||
| Simplified phylogeny of the Crysophileae based on four nuclear genes and the matK plastid gene.[3] |
Sabinaria magnifica was described by Colombian palm experts Rodrigo Bernal and Gloria Galeano in 2013. The genus was named after their daughter, Sabina while the specific epithet, magnifica, is a reference to the "strikingly beautiful aspect of the palm". They placed it in the tribe Cryosophileae on the basis of morphological characteristics and commented on the similarity to Itaya.[1] A phylogenetic study by Ángela Cano and collaborators confirmed the placement of Sabinaria in the Cryosophileae based on four nuclear genes and the matK plastid gene. Their analysis also identified Itaya as a sister genus to Sabinaria.[3]
Scientific discovery
Although known by local mule drivers, the species was first collected by Saúl Hoyos, a Colombian botanist, in April 2013. Hoyos sent pictures of it to palm systematist Rodrigo Bernal. Based on the pictures, Bernal concluded that it was probably a new species in the Crysophileae, and possibly an entirely new genus, an opinion that was shared by his partner and collaborator Gloria Galeano who described it as "the most beautiful of all Colombian palms".[2]
Bernal, Galeano, Hoyos and Norman Echavarría returned to the site a few months later where they were able to collect additional samples, including flowers and fruit. These allowed them to conclude that this was a new genus. Ten days after returning from the expedition, the manuscript describing the new genus and species was submitted to the journal Phytotaxa, and was formally published in November 2013.[2]
Distribution
The species is only known from the Darién Gap on the border between Colombia and Panama, and has been recorded from both Colombia (where it was first discovered)[2] and in Panama.[4] Although locally common, the limited range makes the species vulnerable to habitat destruction.[2][4]
References
- ^ a b Galeano, Gloria; Bernal, Rodrigo (2013-11-08). "Sabinaria , a new genus of palms (Cryosophileae, Coryphoideae, Arecaceae) from the Colombia-Panama border". Phytotaxa. 144 (2): 27–44. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.144.2.1. ISSN 1179-3163.
- ^ a b c d e f Bernal, Rodrigo (2014). "The Discovery of the Amazing Sabinaria magnifica". Palms. 58: 5–18.
- ^ a b Cano, Ángela; Bacon, Christine D.; Stauffer, Fred W.; Antonelli, Alexandre; Serrano‐Serrano, Martha L.; Perret, Mathieu (2018). "The roles of dispersal and mass extinction in shaping palm diversity across the Caribbean". Journal of Biogeography. 45 (6): 1432–1443. doi:10.1111/jbi.13225. ISSN 1365-2699.
- ^ a b Cano, Ángela; Favio Manrique, Héctor; Hoyos-Gómez, Saúl E.; Echavarría, Norman; Upegui, Andrés; González, María F.; Galeano, Gloria; Bernal, Rodrigo (2017). "Palms of the Darién Gap (Colombia-Panama)". Palms. 61: 5–20.