Coccothrinax montana Burret (1929: 17)

Henderson, Andrew, 2023, A revision of Coccothrinax, Hemithrinax, Leucothrinax, Thrinax, and Zombia (Arecaceae), Phytotaxa 614 (1), pp. 1-115 : 64

1.24. Coccothrinax montana Burret (1929: 17) . Lectotype (designated here):— DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. Cord. Central, Prov. de Azua, Loma Nalga de Maco , 1,700 m, 8 June 1925, E. Ekman 6297 (lectotype S n.v., S image!, the holotype at B was destroyed). Plate 18

Stems 2.8(2.5–3.0) m long and 10.0 cm diameter, solitary. Leaves more or less deciduous or only leaf bases persisting on stem; leaf sheath fibers 1.4(1.1–1.6) mm diameter, stout, woody, loosely woven, ± joined or briefly free at the apices; petioles 15.6(8.1–21.8) mm diameter just below the apex; palmans 20.1(12.0–26.50) cm long, relatively long, without prominent adaxial veins; leaf blades not wedge-shaped; segments 43(29–48), the middle ones 67.8(50.0– 75.5) cm long and 3.7(2.7–4.6) cm wide; segments not pendulous at the apices, giving the leaf a flat appearance; middle leaf segments tapering from base to apex, often folded, stiff and leathery, with or without scarcely developed shoulders, the apices sharply pointed and briefly splitting; middle leaf segment apices attenuate; leaf segments not waxy or sometimes with a deciduous, thin layer of wax adaxially, without indumentum, scales, or wax abaxially, with well-developed transverse veinlets. Inflorescences curving, arching, or pendulous amongst the leaves, with few partial inflorescences; rachis bracts somewhat flattened, loosely sheathing, usually tomentose with a dense tuft of erect hairs at the apex; partial inflorescences 2; proximalmost rachillae straight, 6.0(5.0–7.0) cm long and 0.9(0.6–1.2) mm diameter in fruit; rachillae glabrous at or near anthesis; stamens not recorded; fruit pedicels 0.8(0.6–1.0) mm long; fruits 13.4 (10.3–16.4) mm long and 12.2(9.2–15.2) mm diameter, white; fruit surfaces smooth or sometimes with projecting fibers; seed surfaces deeply lobed, the lobes running from base of seeds almost to apices.

Distribution and habitat:— Dominican Republic (Bahoruco, Duarte, Elías Piña, Santiago de los Cabelleros) ( Fig. 14 ) in dwarf forest or cloud forest on steep slopes on limestone at 1,285(480–1,850) m elevation.

Taxonomic notes:— As a preliminary species, Coccothrinax montana has a unique combination of qualitative character states and is recognized as a phylogenetic species. However, leaf indumentum is difficult to score. It seems that some indumentum is present on young leaves, and sometimes persists on parts of older leaves, but is mostly early deciduous leaving leaves green abaxially. In its small inflorescences and relatively large fruits (and usual high elevation habitat) it resembles C. scoparia (see notes under that species). It differs from that species in its relatively long palman without prominent adaxial veins. Burret (1929) cited two specimens (Ekman 6297, 1673) in the protologue. The former is the type of C. montana , the latter is here considered to represent C. scoparia . Nauman & Sanders (1991b) scored C. montana as having muricate ovary surfaces. Fruits, however, are not muricate.

Subspecific variation:— Coccothrinax montana is known from five, widely separate localities— Loma Nalga de Maco in the Cordillera Central (type locality); Pico Duarte in the Cordillera Central; Loma Diego de Ocampo in the Cordillera Septentrional; Loma La Canela in the Cordillera Septentrional; and the Sierra de Neiva. There are only a few specimens from each locality, too few to test for differences. However, there appears to be some local variation. For example, specimens from Loma Diego de Ocampo have considerably larger fruits than other specimens.

Two sterile specimens may also belong here; Zanoni 22369 from 900 m on the Río El Canal , Peravia province , and Zanoni 14979 from 600 m at Fuerte de Resoli , San Cristóbal province .

Figures

FIGURE 14. Distribution of Coccothrinax landestoyii, C. microphylla, C. miraguama and C. montana.

PLATE 18. Coccothrinax montana, Dominican Republic, with relatively long palmans without prominent adaxial veins. (Image by Eladio Fernández).