Arecaceae
Chambeyronia

Chambeyronia oliviformis (Brongn. & Gris) Hodel & C.F.Barrett

First published in Palms (1999+) 65: 125 (2021)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Central New Caledonia. It is a tree and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

Distribution
Kentiopsis oliviformis is restricted to central New Caledonia at low elevations (10-300 m), from Farino to Col des Roussettes on the west side and from Canala (not recently seen) to Kouaoua on the east side.
Biology
Ecology. A gregarious species, Kentiopsis oliviformis is an emergent tree in transitional, semi humid Aleurites forest only, where it occurs on schists and basalts often mixed with serpentine colluvium. In valley bottoms in the Tindéa-Boghen area, there are numerous populations, each nearly forming a pure stand of 0.1-1 ha (usually on flat land along a temporary stream)o within which there is no regeneration due to continuous leaf fall from tall (25-30 m), mature trees. Regeneration occurs only on the periphery of each stand where mature trees are more widely spaced. Mature trees become even more widely spaced farther out from the center of each populationt hen disappeara ltogetheor n adjacenth illsides and valley slopes. In the Koh region of Kouaoua under a more humid climate, but also around Farino, K. oliviformise scapes from valley bottoms and is scattered on well-drained hill slopes. Phenology. Anthesis occurs from November through December; fruits mature from February throughM arch. Seeds germinate immediately after dispersion.
General Description
Emergent palm. Trunk to 30 m tall, 25 cm dbh, gray, base thickened. Leaves 8-10, ascending to spreading; sheath to 1.1 m long, initially densely covered with ± concrescent white-translucent appressed trichomes, becoming grayish with age, glabrescent; petiole to 10 cm long; rachis to 3 m long, initially with same indument as sheath; pinnae 40-55 on each side, median ones 8B0-105 X 4-6 cm, basal ones continuing into lorae, all ± drooping, shining dark green adaxially, paler abaxially. Inflorescences erect to ascending, branched to three orders; peduncle 7-10 cm long; prophyll and first peduncular bract 60-70 X 20 cm, with deciduous brown-centered white-floccose scales becoming puncticulate; rachis to 35 cm long, bearing stellate scales; branches ca. 18, bearing same scales; rachillae to 30 cm long, ± glabrescent; bracts subtending branches and rachillae low, rounded, ± ruffled. Flowers in triads nearly to apex of rachillae, bract subtending triad prominent, rounded, liplike; bracteoles surrounding pistillate flowers low, unequal, rounded to pointed, not sepal-like; staminate buds 5.5-6.5 mm high, very asymmetrical, pointed; stamens 34-37, slightly shorter than petals, filaments 2 mm long, straight and not attenuate apically, anthers 2.8-3 mm long, linear, latrorse, emarginate apically, bifid basally, connective elongate, large, black; pistillode nearly as high as stamens, columnar, attenuate to a sometimes briefly trifid apex; pistillate flowers 5.5-7 mm high, staminodes 3, gynoecium 4.8 X 3.5 mm, ± diamond- shaped. Fruits l4-17 x 8-9 mm, red; stigmatic remains apical; mesocarp with flat fibers adherent to endocarp throughout. Seeds ll-13 X 6 mm, ellipsoid. Leaves of juvenile individuals spirally arranged; saxophone growth present.
Conservation
Kentiopsis oliviformis is endangered (Jaffté et al. in press). All populations are in areas under agricultural pressure; none have normal regeneration. In the Tendéa-Boghen area with several populations exceeding 1000 individuals, regeneration is very low due to cattle grazing; dramatic population reduction is expected here. The government of the South Province of New Caledonia has established an experimental, fenced area near Boghen to exclude cattle from one stand of K. oliviformis. However, these measures need to be greatly expanded to protect these and other populations adequately. Clearing of forests and harvesting trees for the edible cabbage or palm heart have much reduced populations near Kouaoua, La Foa, and Bourail.
[PW]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: low confidence
[AERP]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/38587/185103406

Conservation
EN - endangered
[IUCN]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Palmweb - Palms of the World Online

    • Palmweb 2011. Palmweb: Palms of the World Online. Published on the internet http://www.palmweb.org. Accessed on 21/04/2013
    • Content licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0