Acanthophoenix rubra

taxobox
name = "Barbel Palm"

---

status = CR
status_system = iucn2.3
regnum = Plantae
unranked_divisio = Angiosperms
unranked_classis = Monocots
unranked_ordo = Commelinids
ordo = Arecales
familia = Arecaceae
genus = "Acanthophoenix"
species = "A. rubra"
binomial = "Acanthophoenix rubra"
binomial_authority = (Bory) H.Wendl.|

The Barbel palm ("Acanthophoenix rubra") is a critically endangered palm endemic to Mauritius, Rodrigues, and La Reunion that is prized for its edible palm hearts.

It is also known as the red- or yellow- Barbel palm, red palm, Mascarene Islands cabbage palm, and palmiste rouge, palmiste bourre, palmiste des bois, palmiste des hauts, palmiste épineux, palmiste zépines, palmiste piquant in French.Grubben, G.J.H. & Denton, O.A. (2004) Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA Foundation, Wageningen; Backhuys, Leiden; CTA, Wageningen.]

This palm was first described as "Areca rubra" by French naturalist Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent in 1804 and classified by German botanist Hermann Wendland in its own genus "Acanthophoenix" in 1867. It can reach a height of 12 m. The trunk is slender, with a diameter of 18 cm. The crown contents of about 10 leaves approximately 3 m in size which are arranged convoluted.

In his 1995 checklist of seed plants, Rafael Govaerts considered "A. crinita" to be a synonym of "Acanthophoenix rubra", as did Govaerts and John Dransfield in their 2005 checklist of palms. However, in his revision of the genus, N. Ludwig recognised "A. crinita" as a separate species.cite web |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?accepted_id=1610&repSynonym_id=14530&name_id=1610&status=true |title= " Acanthophoenix crinita"|accessdate=2008-09-08 |format= |work= Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]

Threats

The Barbel palm is endangered due to habitat destruction to make way for sugarcane plantations, and its high value as edible and medicinal plant. The palm heart is a delicacy. About 150 individuals occur in the wild on Mauritius. It is widely grown in cultivation.

ynonyms

*"Areca rubra" Bory (1804).
*"Acanthophoenix crinita" (Bory)H.Wendl. (1867).

References

External links

* [http://database.prota.org/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?AC=QBE_QUERY&BU=http%3A%2F%2Fdatabase.prota.org%2Fsearch.htm&TN=PROTAB~1&QB0=AND&QF0=Species+Code&QI0=Acanthophoenix+rubra&RF=Webdisplay PROTAbase on "Acanthophoenix rubra"]
* Listed as Critically Endangered (CR B1+2c v2.3)
* [http://ecoport.org/ep?Plant=2732&entityType=PL****&entityDisplayCategory=full Acanthophoenix rubra factsheet]
* [http://www.pacsoa.org.au/palms/Acanthophoenix/rubra.html PACSOA factsheet]