Caulescent, often tall, rarely acaulescent, solitary or suckering, monoecious, monocarpic
Leaves
pinnate, often very large; petiole unarmed; rachis with small ascending spines; leaflets reduplicate, linear, margin and midrib spinous
Spadix
compound, axillary and pendulous or terminal and erect; peduncle covered by 2-ranked, imbricate, gaping bracts; branches and abbreviated flowering branchlets laterally compressed, laxly arranged or congested in one plane; bracts 2-ranked, imbricate
Flowers
2-ranked; females near base; males on upper part of spadix
Male flowers
with a bicarinate bracteole; calyx tubular or 3-lobed; petals 3, free or nearly so; stamens 6-many, free or connate; ovary 0
Female flowers
with an outer and an inner bracteole and an accrescent calyx and corolla; staminodial ring adnate to corolla; anthers minute or 0; ovary 3-locular, with 1 ovule developing; style short or 0, with 3 stigmas
Fruit
ovoid, covered with brown, imbricate scales arranged in vertical rows, each with a median groove, apex rostrate; 1-seeded
x = 14
Nomenclature:
Raphia
P.Beauv.
Palisot de Beauvois: 75 (1805)
Obermeyer & Strey: 29 (1969)
Wicht: 43 (1969)
Otedoh: 145 (1982)
Dransfield: 37 (1986)
Uhl & Dransfield: 275 (1987)
Distribution & Notes:
Global
: Species ± 28, mainly tropical Africa and Madagascar, 1 in South America
Southern Africa
: Species 1:
Raphia australis
Oberm. & Strey, KwaZulu-Natal
Also in Mozambique
References:
DRANSFIELD, J. 1986.
Flora of tropical East Africa
.
Palmae
OBERMEYER, A.A. & STREY, R.G. 1969. A new species of
Raphia
from northern Zululand and southern Mozambique.
Bothalia
10
OTEDOH, M. 1982. A revision of the genus
Raphia
Beauv. (
Palmae
).
Journal of the Nigerian Institute of Oil Palm Research
6,22
PALISOT DE BEAUVOIS, A.M.F.J. 1805.
Flore d'Oware et de Bénin
, Vol. 1. Fain & Co., Paris
UHL, N. & DRANSFIELD, J.W. 1987.
Genera palmarum
. International Palm Society and Allen Press, Lawrence KS
WICHT, H. 1969.
The indigenous palms of southern Africa
. Timmins, Cape Town
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