Bactris coloniata L.H.Bailey

  • Authority

    Henderson, A. 2000. (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 79: 1-181. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Arecaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Bactris coloniata L.H.Bailey

  • Type

    Type. Panama. Colón: Barro Colorado Island, 29 Jun 1931, L. Bailey 77 (lectotype, designated by de Nevers et al., 1996, BH).

  • Description

    Species Description - Stems cespitose, rarely solitary, forming open clumps, 3.5-7 m tall, 2-5 cm diam., spiny on internodes. Leaves 5-7; leaf spines scattered, somewhat flattened, yellowish brown, darker at base and apex, to 5 cm long; sheath 27-85 cm long; sheath, petiole, and rachis reddish brown-tomentose; ocrea prominent, to 30 cm long; petiole 39-70(-108) cm long; rachis (0.4-) 1.2-1.4(-2) m long; pinnae (4-) 14-23(-60) per side (or rarely leaf simple), regularly or irregularly arranged in clusters of 4-12, spreading in the same or different planes, linear-lanceolate, elliptic or slightly sigmoid, the apex long-caudate and drooping, without conspicuous cross-veins, glabrous; middle pinnae 30-75 × 2.5-7.2 cm. Inflorescences interfoliar; peduncle 16-25 cm, strongly recurved, not spiny; prophyll 15-49 cm; peduncular bract (26-)42-60 cm long, densely covered with appressed, brown, flattened spines; rachis 4-10 cm long; rachillae 9-16(-25), 14-25 cm long, to 3 mm diam, in fruit, densely covered at anthesis with moniliform trichomes; triads irregularly arranged among paired or solitary staminate flowers; staminate flowers to 4 mm long; sepal lobes 1-3 mm long; petals to 4 mm long; stamens 6; pistillode absent; pistillate flowers 5-7 mm long; calyx urceolate, 4-6 mm long; corolla urceolate, 5-6 mm long, with minute spinules; staminodes absent; fruits 1.5-3 × 1.5-2(-3) cm, broadly obovoid, prominently rostrate, yellowish brown, covered with short brown spinules; mesocarp juicy; endocarp turbinate, the pores equidistant or the sterile pores slightly displaced longitudinally; endocarp fibers numerous, wiry, with juice sacs attached; fruiting perianth with calyx only slightly shorter than the corolla, both crenulate-margined, without staminodial ring.

  • Discussion

    Bactris coloniata is diagnosed by its yellowish brown fruits covered with short brown spinules. Some specimens cited above are problematical. Nee 7020 from Panama has the subequal fruiting calyx and corolla and spinulose fruits of B. coloniata and the plicate leaves of B. kunorum, and pinnae with numerous, black, marginal spines 1-3 mm long. Specimens from Colombia have much larger fruits than those from Panama. The inclusion here of specimens from east of the Andes in Peru (and also Ecuador) is also somewhat problematic. These specimens appear to represent this species, even though the fruits are rather different and one specimen has simple leaves.

  • Common Names

    signugar, uvita, uvito, kamanca, shigki, tujujinak

  • Distribution

    Eastern Panama (Colón, Panamá, San Blas), northwestern Colombia (Antioquia, Chocó), Ecuador (Los Ríos), and Peru (Amazonas) (Fig. 18B); lowland rain forest, at 20-675 m elevation.

    Panama Central America| Colón Panama Central America| Colombia South America| Chocó Colombia South America| Ecuador South America| Los Ríos Ecuador South America| Peru South America| Amazonas Peru South America|