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: Caribbean royal palm, South American royal palm, cabbage palm, imperial palm, royal palm

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Trunk gray, to 40 m tall , 46-66 cm in diameter.  Leaves 20-22, lowest leaves held at or above horizontal; crowns haft ca. 2 m long; petiole 60-100 cm long, rachis 4-4.6 m long; middle segments 65-94 cm long and 3-4.9 cm wide. Inflorescence ca. 1.4 m long and 0.7 m wide; prophyll 46.5-53 cm long and 8.8-16 cm wide; peduncular bract ca. 1.5 m long, widest above 23 the middle, apex caudate; rachillae 16-30 cm long and 1.5-2.8 mm in diameter. Staminate flowers white; sepals triangular, 1.4-1.7 mm long and 1.6-2.6 mm wide; petals elliptical to ovate, 3-4.8 mm long and 1.4-2.7 mm wide; stamens 6-8, 4.4-8.8 mm long; filaments awl-shaped, 3-6.9 mm long; anthers 3.5-4.7 mm long, apices recurved; pistillode minute. Pistillate flowers white, 2.5-4.5 per cm; sepals reniform, 1.5-1.8 mm long and 3.3-4.3 mm wide; petals ovate, 2.6-3.4 mm long; staminode 6-lobed, 1.8-2.5 mm long, free for 0.9-1.2 mm; gynoecium 1.8-2.9 mm long and 1.6-2.5 mm in diameter. Fruit ellipsoid, gibbous, 12.6-17.6 mm long, 8.2-10.8 mm dorsiventral thickness, and 7.6-10.4 mm wide; epicarp purplish black, stigmatic scar plain; endocarp ellipsoid, 9.8-13.7 mm long, 6.8-7.7 mm dorsiventral thickness, and 6.8-7.7 mm wide; seed ellipsoid, 7.5-10.5 mm long, 4.6-6.1 mm dorsiventral thickness, and 5.1-6.8 mm wide; raphe circular. Eophyll linear-elliptical, short- or exstipitate, weakly costate"  (Zona, 1996, in Palmweb). 

"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:  Barbados; Dominica; Guadeloupe; Martinique; Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Colombia (GRIN).

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	introduced cultivated	Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. (2010) (p. 38)
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. (2013)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 112) Voucher cited: MacKee 39823 Spontané
Palau Palau (Belau ) (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (pp. 87-88)
Palau Palau (Belau ) (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)	introduced	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (2010) (p. 8)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	introduced cultivated	Shine, C./Reaser, J. K./Gutierrez, A. T., eds. (2003) (p. 166) As Roystonea venezuelana. Potential invader.

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 296)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 75) Cultivated only
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Colombia	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe/Hodel, Donald R. (2008) (p. 76) Locally naturalized.
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	introduced cultivated	Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe/Hodel, Donald R. (2008) (p. 76)

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

Control:  If you know of control methods for Roystonea oleracea, please let us know.