Butia purpurascens
| Butia purpurascens | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| (unranked): | Commelinids |
| Order: | Arecales |
| Family: | Arecaceae |
| Subfamily: | Arecoideae |
| Tribe: | Cocoseae |
| Genus: | Butia |
| Species: | B. purpurascens |
| Binomial name | |
| Butia purpurascens Glassman | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Butia purpurascens is a smallish, endangered species of Butia palm, up to 3-7m tall.[3][4] It is locally known as palmeira-jataí[4][5], coqueiro-de-vassoura[4], or butiá[4] in Portuguese. The species epithet is derived from Latin purpureus, meaning 'purple', with the suffix -escens meaning 'becoming'.[6]
Taxonomy
It was described by Sidney Glassman in 1979.[7]
Description
This is a solitary-trunked, monoecious palm.[4][5] Although Glassman described it as 1.2-4m tall in his original description,[7] by 2012 it was known to usually grow to 3-4m, with some individuals reaching 7m in height.[4]
The petiole of the leaf is unarmed. The rachis of the leaf is 114–150cm in length. The branched inflorescence has a woody, hairless spathe 70–105cm in length. The pistillate (female) flowers are 5–6mm in length. The shape of the fruit is ovoid, as is the nut.[5]
Similar species
Glassman considered it superficially similar to Butia capitata (which included B. odorata at the time), differing primarily from that by the lack of teeth along the margins of the petioles, the long acuminate tips of the pinnae (leaflets) as opposed to obtuse or acute, and the generally purplish spathes, spadices, flowers and fruit. He considered it closer related to B. archeri due to the similar pinnae, the lack of teeth on the petioles, and sizes and shapes of its fruit and flowers, yet differing in always possessing an above-ground trunk, in its larger dimensions of leaves and inflorescences, and in the purplish colour of its flowers and fruit.[7]
Distribution
It is endemic to the cerrado ecoregion, where the single, quite healthy population occurs near Jataí,[1] within southwestern Goiás and western Minas Gerais states of Brazil,[2][5] largely protected within the confines of a military reservation (41º BIMTZ).[1][4]
It occurs in the states of Minas Gerais and the south of Goiás in Brazil. The total area of occupancy is estimated to be only 3,762km².[4]
Ecology
It fruits throughout the year. The age structure of the extant population shows a pattern of periods of high germination success alternated with longer periods of low fecundity.[4]
Uses
In its native palm groves near Jataí the fruit are harvested and gathered from the wild.[4]
It is not hardy. It is advised to plant the palms in full sunlight. It is said to take 0°C, but should be protected at 10°C in the Netherlands.[8]
Conservation
Noblick, writing for the IUCN in 1998, mentioned high seed predation by 'bean weevils' as a possible threat to the species, and due to this and its limited range classified it as 'vulnerable'.[1]
In 2012 the Centro Nacional de Conservação da Flora rated the conservation status for Brazil as 'endangered', primarily due to an already restricted distribution and habitat loss due to the many decades of ongoing mining and the pressure of agricultural expansion, as well as the gathering of fruit by local people and tourists, and a high juvenile mortality (see ecology section above).[4]
Much of the population is protected within the confines of a military reservation (41º BIMTZ).[1][4]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Noblick, L. (1998). "Butia purpurascens". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 1998: e.T38463A10120736. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.1998.RLTS.T38463A10120736.en. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
- 1 2 Govaerts, R. (2018). "World Checklist of Selected Plant Families". Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
- ↑ "Butia purpurascens Glassman, Principes 23: 67 (1979), nom. inval. - PALMweb". Palmweb - Palms of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2013. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Prieto, Pablo Viany (2 May 2012). "Centro Nacional de Conservação da Flora - CNCFlora" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- 1 2 3 4 Heiden, G.; Ellert-Pereira, P.E.; Eslabão, M.P. (2015). "Brazilian Flora Checklist - Butia purpurascens Glassman". Butia in Lista de Espécies da Flora do Brasil, Flora do Brasil 2020 under construction (in Portuguese). Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
- ↑ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. pp. 135, 643.
- 1 2 3 Glassman, Sidney Fredrick (1979). "Re-evaluation of the Genus Butia With a Description of a New Species" (PDF). Principes. 23: 74–78. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ↑ Wagelaar, Edwin (31 December 2017). "Het geslacht Butia". Palmexotica (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 October 2018.