Ray palms

Ray palms
Large-leaved ray palm ( Licuala grandis )
Systematics
Class : Bedecktsamer (Magnoliopsida) Monocots Commelinids Order : Palm- like arecales Family : Palm family (Arecaceae) Genre : Ray palms
Scientific name
Licuala
Wurmb

The ray palms ( Licuala ) are a genus of palms native to Southeast Asia and Australia . Over 150 species are known.

features

The representatives are very small to medium-sized, single-stem or multi-stem fan palms . They are stemless or shrub-like, less often tree-shaped. They are reinforced or unreinforced, blooming several times and mostly hermaphroditic, very rarely diocesan . The trunk is very short and underground, or creeping or erect. It is closely covered with ring-shaped leaf scars, which are partly covered by remains of the leaf sheaths. Sometimes short, bulbilla- like rungs sit on the nodes .

The chromosome number is 2n = 28.

leaves

Leaf of Licuala orbicularis

Leaf of Licuala spinosa

The leaves are palmat (hand-shaped) and remain on the plant after they die (marzescence). The leaf sheath disintegrates into fibers, its edge sometimes remains as a broad, ligular-like band or tongue. The top of the petiole is furrowed at the base, rounded or furrowed distally. The bottom is rounded or angular. The edge of the petiole has sharp teeth or triangular spines, but it can also be unreinforced. The adaxial hastula is clearly defined and mostly triangular. The abaxial hastula is missing.

The leaf blade is undivided or split in various ways along the adaxial ribs to the base, so that single to multiple folded, wedge-shaped reduplicate segments arise. These segments are in turn torn very briefly along the abaxial folds and somewhat longer along the adaxial folds. The central segment is usually undivided, sometimes in two parts (bifid), sometimes it stands on a stem-like extension.

Inflorescences

The inflorescences are between the leaves (interfoliar), their length ranges from much shorter to significantly longer than the leaves. They vary widely in appearance and degree of branching, ranging from spike-shaped to triply branched. The inflorescence stalk is short to very long and has a basal, two-keeled, tubular cover leaf and zero to five or more similar, tubular, bald or hairy bracts with a tightly fitting or inflated sheath . The bracts on the inflorescence axis usually carry distant first-order branches. The bracts of the higher order lateral axes are very small. There are few to about 30 or more flower-bearing axes (rachillae). These are crowded or protruding, are bald to variously scaled or hairy. They carry the flowers in a spiral arrangement. The flowers are distant or crowded.

blossoms

The flowers are single or in groups of two or three. They are seated or stand on short to long spurs. Each flower sits in the axilla of a tiny, triangular bract. The calyx is at the base sometimes stem-like, tubular, irregularly split or with three triangular lobes; he is bald or hairy differently. The crown mostly protrudes far from the calyx, is tubular at the base and is divided into three rather thick, triangular, valvate tips. The crown is bald or hairy differently and has mostly impressions of the anthers on the inside . The six stamens are epipetal. The filaments are free, somewhat flattened, or they are united into a conspicuous tube with three identical teeth on which the hanging anthers sit. Or there is a three-lobed ring with three anthers on short filaments and three more between the lobes. The anthers are round to elongated, very small to medium in size. They open latrors.

The gynoeceum is triple, bald or hairy differently. The carpels are wedge-shaped, not fused in the region of the ovules, distal to a long, narrow columnar stylus united. There is a small, punctiform scar at the top . The ovules are basal and anatropic.

The pollen is ellipsoidal and mostly bisymmetrical. The germ opening is a distal sulcus. The longest axis measures 28 to 50 microns.

Fruits and seeds

The fruits have a variety of shapes: spherical, egg-shaped, narrow, straight, spindle-shaped or curved. The flower shell remains on the fruit. One to all three carpels develop. The abortive carpels are at the tip of the fruit with the scar remnants, but can also remain at the base. The exocarp is often conspicuously colored, matt or shiny, rarely covered with cork warts. The mesocarp is fleshy, somewhat fibrous, thin to thick. The endocarp is thin and crusty. The seed sets in basal. The endosperm is homogeneous or, less often, ruminate (furrowed).

Flower ecology

Little is known about the flower ecology of Licuala . An examination of three species showed a clear nectar production . The flowers remain open for a relatively long time, a large number of idioblasts in the tissue with calcium oxalate - raphids should act as protection against feeding. The flowers were visited by a large number of insects, of which only representatives of the Coleoptera, Diptera and Hymenoptera come into consideration as pollinators. Species of these orders were also covered with relevant amounts of pollen.

Distribution and locations

Licuala corneri in its natural habitat in Malaysia

Licuala orbicularis

Licuala peltata

Licuala ramsayi

The distribution area of Licuala extends from India and South China over Southeast Asia to Malesia , Queensland , the Solomon Islands and the New Hebrides . The greatest biodiversity is found on the Malay Peninsula , Borneo and New Guinea .

Most of the species are representatives of the undergrowth of the forests. Some grow in groups and give certain forest types a characteristic appearance. Some species are very local and grow as scattered single specimens. A few species are strictly calcicol. Licuala spinosa , the most common species, grows in the forests that adjoin the mangroves on the land side. Licuala paludosa is a common representative in peat swamp forests. In some forest types of Borneo, several species occur sympatric .

Systematics

The genus Licuala is within the family Arecaceae in the subfamily coryphoideae , tribe Trachycarpeae , subtribe Livistoninae provided. The genus is likely monophyletic . The systematic position of Licuala within the subtribe is not clear: one work saw it as a sister group of Johannesteijsmannia , two others as a sister group of a clade from Johannesteijsmannia , Pholidocarpus and Pritchardiopsis .

In the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew , the following types are recognized:

Licuala acuminata Licuala acutifida Licuala adscendens Licuala ahlidurii Licuala angustiloba Licuala anomala Licuala aruensis Licuala atrovirens Licuala atroviridis Licuala averyanovii Licuala bachmaensis Licuala bacularia Licuala bayana Licuala beccariana Licuala bellatula Licuala bidentata Licuala bidoupensis Licuala bifida Licuala bintulensis Licuala bissula Licuala borneensis Licuala bracteata Licuala brevicalyx Licuala bruneiana Licuala burretii Licuala cabalionii Licuala caespitosa Licuala cameronensis Licuala campestris Licuala cattienensis Licuala celebica Licuala chaiana Licuala collina Licuala concinna Licuala cordata Licuala corneri Licuala crassiflora Licuala dakrongensis Licuala debilis Licuala densiflora Licuala distans Licuala egregia Licuala elegans

Licuala elegantissima Licuala ellipsoidalis Licuala elliptica Licuala exigua Licuala ferruginea Licuala ferruginoides Licuala flammula Licuala flavida Licuala flexuosa Licuala fordiana Licuala fractiflexa Licuala gjellerupii Licuala glaberrima Licuala glabra Licuala graminifolia Licuala grandiflora Licuala grandis Licuala hallieriana Licuala honbaensis Licuala honheoensis Licuala insignis Licuala intermedia Licuala kamarudinii Licuala kemamanensis Licuala khoonmengii Licuala kiahii Licuala kingiana Licuala klossii Licuala kuchingensis Licuala kunstleri Licuala lambii Licuala lamdongensis Licuala lanata Licuala lanuginosa Licuala lauterbachii Licuala leopoldii Licuala leprosa Licuala leptocalyx Licuala leucocarpa Licuala linearis Licuala longicalycata Licuala longiflora

Licuala longipes Licuala longispadix Licuala macrantha Licuala magna Licuala malajana Licuala manglaensis Licuala mattanensis Licuala meijeri Licuala merguensis Licuala micholitzii Licuala micrantha Licuala mirabilis Licuala miriensis Licuala modesta Licuala montana Licuala moszkowskiana Licuala moyseyi Licuala mukahensis Licuala mustapana Licuala nana Licuala naumoniensis Licuala nauroannii Licuala nuichuaensis Licuala olivifera Licuala oliviformis Licuala oninensis Licuala orbicularis Licuala oryzoides Licuala pachycalyx Licuala pahangensis Licuala palas Licuala paludosa Licuala parviflora Licuala parvula Licuala patens Licuala paucisecta Licuala peekelii Licuala peltata Licuala penduliflora Licuala petiolulata Licuala pilosa Licuala pitta Licuala platydactyla

Licuala polyschista Licuala poonsakii Licuala pseudovalida Licuala pulchella Licuala pumila Licuala punctulata Licuala pusilla Licuala radula Licuala ramsayi Licuala reptans Licuala rheophytica Licuala ridleyana Licuala robinsoniana Licuala robusta Licuala rubiginosa Licuala rumphii Licuala ruthiae Licuala sabahana Licuala sallehana Licuala sarawakensis Licuala scortechinii Licuala simplex Licuala spathellifera Licuala spectabilis Licuala spicata Licuala spinosa Licuala steinii Licuala stipitata Licuala stongensis Licuala tanycola Licuala taynguyensis Licuala telifera Licuala tenuissima Licuala terengganuensis Licuala thoana Licuala tiomanensis Licuala tomentosa Licuala tonkinensis Licuala triphylla Licuala urciflora Licuala whitmorei Licuala yiiana

Licuala was first described by Friedrich von Wurmb in 1782 , the type species is Licuala spinosa . The generic name is a Latinization of the vernacular name "leko wala", which was probably used in Makassar ( Sulawesi ) for Licuala spinosa .

Synonyms for Licuala are Pericycla Blume and Dammera Lauterb. & K. Schum.

In 2011 some species were spun off into their own genus Lanonia :

• Licuala acaulis A.J.Hend., NKBan & NQDung => Lanonia acaulis (AJHend., NKBan & NQDung) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala calciphila Becc. => Lanonia calciphila (Becc.) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala centralis A.J.Hend., NKBan & NQDung => Lanonia centralis (AJHend., NKBan & NQDung) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala dasyantha Burret => Lanonia dasyantha (Burret) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala gracilis flower => Lanonia gracilis (flower) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala hainanensis A.J.Hend., LXGuo & Barfod => Lanonia hainanensis (AJHend., LXGuo & Barfod) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala hexasepala Gagnep. => Lanonia hexasepala (Gagnep.) AJHend. & CDBacon
• Licuala magalonii A.J.Hend., NKBan & NQDung => Lanonia magalonii (AJHend., NKBan & NQDung) AJHend. & CDBacon

use

The leaves of some species are used for roofing. Food is also wrapped in the leaves before or after cooking. Smaller trunks are made into walking sticks, larger ones into palisades in construction. The pulp and stem tips are edible. Many species are very decorative, but grow rather slowly.

literature

• John Dransfield, Natalie W. Uhl, Conny B. Asmussen, William J. Baker, Madeline M. Harley, Carl E. Lewis: Genera Palmarum. The Evolution and Classification of Palms . Second edition, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 2008, ISBN 978-1-84246-182-2 , pp. 263-266.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ AS Barfod, T. Burholt, F. Borchsenius: Contrasting pollination modes in three species of Licuala (Arecaceae: coryphoideae) . Telopea, Volume 10, 2003, pp. 207–223 ( Online. ( Memento of the original from October 2, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and remove then this note .; PDF file; 558 kB) 
2. ↑ ^{a b} Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Licuala. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved April 15, 2020.
3. ↑ Andrew J. Henderson, Christine D. Bacon: Lanonia (Arecaceae: Palmae), a New Genus from Asia, with a Revision of the Species . Systematic Botany, Volume 36, 2011, pp. 883-895. doi : 10.1600 / 036364411X604903

Web links

Commons : Licuala  - collection of images, videos and audio files