Roystonea oleracea (N. Jacquin) O. F. Cook, Arecaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Low risk, score: -3 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Areca oleracea Jacq.; Roystonea venezuelana L.H. Bailey

Common name(s): [more details]

English: cabbage palm, Caribbee royal palm, royal palm, South American royal palm

Habit:  tree

Description:  "To 100 ft. or more, trunk swollen at base, then cylindrical; leaves to 20 ft. long, ascending or spreading, forming a crown usually appearing nearly flat on lower side, pinnae in 1 plane near base and apex of leaf, but usually in 2 planes at middle of leaf in mature individuals; inflorescence with undulate rachillae; male flowers 1/4 in. long, stamens 6, filaments usually exceeding the petals and anthers much exserted; fruit oblong-ellipsoid, blackish at maturity, to 3/4 in. long, 3/8 in in diameter" (Bailey & Bailey, 1976; p. 984).

Habitat/ecology:  (no habitat/ecology info known by PIER)

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Trinidad, Barbados, Venezuela, eastern Colombia (Bailey & Bailey, 1976; p. 984).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (pp. 87-88)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island		Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (1998) (p. 7)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1979) (p. 409)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Hiva Oa Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. (2008)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 112) Voucher cited: MacKee 39823 Spontané
Palau Palau (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (pp. 87-88)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)	introduced	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (1998) (p. 7)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands		Wairiu, M./Wagatora, D. (2002)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)

Comments:  Reported to be a potential invader in the Solomon Islands (Wairiu & Wagatora, 2002). Reported to be invasive in French Guinea (Rejmánek, 1996).

Additional information:
Additional online information about Roystonea oleracea is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Roystonea oleracea as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Roystonea oleracea may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

Other Latin names:  Areca oleracea Jacq.; Roystonea venezuelana L.H. Bailey

References:

Bailey, L. H./Bailey, E. Z. 1976. Hortus third: A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada. Macmillan, New York. 1290 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1987. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian monocotyledonae. Micronesica 20:1-126.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim. 1998. Checklist of the plants of Palau. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 40 pp.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim. 1998. Checklist of the plants of Pohnpei. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 21 pp.

Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. 2008. Flora of the Marquesas Islands. National Tropical Botanical Garden and the Smithsonian Institution. Online database.

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

Rejmánek, M. 1996. Species richness and resistance to invasions. In: Orians, G., R. Dirzo and J. H. Cushman (eds.). Biodiversity and ecosystem processes in tropical forests. Springer-Verlag. pp. 153-172.

Smith, Albert C. 1979. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 1. 494 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2009. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Wairiu, M./Wagatora, D. 2002. Solomon Islands national profile report on invasive alien species. Prepared for "The prevention and management of invasive alien species: forging cooperation throughout the Austral Pacific", Honolulu, Hawai'i, 15-17 October 2002.