''Balaka streptostachys'' is a

critically endangered An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...

species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the family

Arecaceae The Arecaceae () is a family (biology), family of perennial plant, perennial, flowering plants in the Monocotyledon, monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbing palm, climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly k ...

. It is found only in

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

. It grows to a height of and in diameter. It is distinct from the other ''Balaka'' species because of the twists in its rachilla. The only known population of this palm is in a stand of approximately 50 trees, on the northern foothills of Mt. Sorolevu on Vanau Levu. It was first described by D. Fuller & John Leslie Dowe in 1999.

References

streptostachys Endemic flora of Fiji Critically endangered plants Taxa named by John Leslie Dowe {{Areceae-stub