Asterogyne ramosa Information
Identification:
Stem solitary, erect, 3-6 m tall, 6-10 cm diam., creamy brown, occasionally with lateral vegetative branches; internodes 5-10 cm long; aerial roots forming a short basal cone, each up to 15 cm long, 0.5-1 cm diam., brown, conical; pneumatodes very short to almost absent. Leaves 15-20, the older ones briefly persistent; sheath 9-10(- 17) x 7 cm, densely brown tomentose, the margins slightly fibrous; petiole 30-35 x 0.6-1 cm, channelled adaxially, rounded abaxially, brown tomentose; midvein 39 x 0.5 cm, the indumentum brown, slightly channelled adaxially, almost flat abaxially; blade 0.5-0.7 x 0.18-0.27 m, green, deeply bifid at apex for ca. 33 cm; primary veins 34-45 per side, emerging at 25-30 angle at midvein, prominent on both surfaces of blade, pale green abaxially. Inflorescence branched to 1 order; peduncle 90-120 cm long, 0.4-0.5 cm diam., dorsiventrally compressed, green; prophyll 15-20 cm long, 1.8 cm diam., chartaceous, inserted at base of peduncle; peduncular bracts 2, chartaceous, brown, the indumentum same as on prophyll; first peduncular bract 31-49 x 1.4 cm, inserted 0.5 cm above base of peduncle; second peduncular bract 41-53 x 1- 1.2 cm, inserted 1 cm above base of peduncle; inflorescence rachis 0.5-1.2(-2.5) cm long, 0.4-0.5 cm diam., dorsiventral to irregularly compressed, pale green at anthesis, reddish in fruit, glabrous; rachillae 4-6, terete, erect, same colour as inflorescence rachis, each rachilla subtended by a curved bract up to 0.5 cm long, covered with a whitish farinose indumentum; basal, medial, and apical rachillae 17-19 cm long, 0.5 cm diam., the sterile apex acute, 0.2-0.4 cm long; flower pits spirally arranged, ca. 2-3 mm apart from each other, covered with an inflexed lower lip, 1.5-2 x 1.5-2 mm. Staminate flowers oblong-obovoid in bud, 6-8 mm long, 3-4 mm diam., slightly fragrant, white at anthesis, the pedicel to 1.5 mm long; sepals oblong-obovate, 5-6 x 2-3 mm; petals oblong, 4-6 x 2 mm; stamens 11-12, occasionally 1 sterile; filaments united into a tube to 3 mm long, the free parts 3 mm long, 0.5 mm diam., white, not remarkably thinner at apex, the epidermis not papillate; connective 1 mm long; thecae 1.2 mm long; pistillode 2 mm long. Pistillate flowers oblong-ovoid in bud, 5-7 mm long, 3-4 mm diam., the pedicel to 1 mm long; sepals oblong to ovoid, 4-5 x 2-2.5 mm; petals ovate, 5-6 x 2 mm; ovary 1.5 mm long, 1.5 mm diam.; style 1.5-2 mm long; stigmatic branches 1 mm long; staminodial tube 4 mm long, the lobes (5-)7-9, 2.8-3.4 mm long. Fruit ellipsoid, 1.5-1.7 cm long, 0.5-0.6 cm diam.; epicarp dark purplish red when young, purplish black at maturity; seed ellipsoid, 1.3 cm long, 0.4 cm diam.
Work in progress
Species Information currently being revised!
Distribution:
Native to, Venezuela
Known only from the understorey of the montane cloud forest in the north-eastern Coastal Cordillera, state of Sucre, Venezuela; from 730-1250 m. Although the voucher for collection Steyermark 94803 mentions the palm growing at 1600 m on the Cerro Humo, this must be an error because the summit of this mountain has been reported to be 1250 m.
Location: Venezuela (10.686013°N, -62.404404°E)