Pandanus rigidifolius

Pandanus rigidifolius
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Pandanales
Family:	Pandanaceae
Genus:	Pandanus
Species:	P. rigidifolius
Binomial name
	Pandanus rigidifolius; R.E.Vaughan & Wiehe

Pandanus rigidifolius is a species of plant in the Pandanaceae family, endemic to Mauritius.^[1]

Description

A low, small, spreading, many-branched tree. It produces lots of stilt-like roots, along the trunk, but also along the length of the side-branches.

It can be distinguished by its compact (often trifarious) rosettes of small, rigid, erect, red-spined, deep blue-green leaves. These are usually only 75 cm long and 6 cm wide, folded length-wise (reduplicate), stiff, erect, and have an abrupt, obtuse leaf-tip. The reddish spines are closely set along the margins of the leaves.

The small (7–8 cm) fruit-head is held erect on a short peduncle, and enclosed in three-ranked (trifarious) bracts. Each fruit-head is packed with 200-220 small, unilocular drupes, with slightly convex tips.

In its appearance, it is most similar to the other dwarf Mauritian species Pandanus microcarpus, as well as the Madagascan species Pandanus microcephalus.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Distribution

It was endemic to Mauritius, where it was formerly common in the damp wetlands of the highlands near Le Petrin and Les Mares.

References

↑ http://www.ipni.org/ipni/idPlantNameSearch.do?id=671429-1
↑ Vaughan RE, Wiehe PO (1953) The genus Pandanus in the Mascarene Islands. Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Botany 55(356): 1-33. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.1953.tb00001.x.
↑ Strahm, W.A. 1993. The conservation and restoration of the flora of Mauritius and Rodrigues. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis (2 vols.), Reading University, UK.
↑ Vaughan, R.E. and Wiehe, P.O. 1953. Flore des Mascareignes, Genus Pandanus. The Sugar Industry Research Institute, Mauritius, ORSTOM, Paris and RBG, Kew.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] ttp://www.ipni.org/ipni/idPlantNameSearch.do?id=671429-1

[2] Vaughan RE, Wiehe PO (1953) The genus Pandanus in the Mascarene Islands. Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Botany 55(356): 1-33. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.1953.tb00001.x.

[3] Strahm, W.A. 1993. The conservation and restoration of the flora of Mauritius and Rodrigues. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis (2 vols.), Reading University, UK.

[4] Vaughan, R.E. and Wiehe, P.O. 1953. Flore des Mascareignes, Genus Pandanus. The Sugar Industry Research Institute, Mauritius, ORSTOM, Paris and RBG, Kew.