''Astrocaryum chambira'', the chambira palm or chambira, is a large and spiny

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...

native to the

Amazon Rainforest The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

that is mostly known for its commercial value as a

fiber crop Fiber crops are field crops grown for their fibers, which are traditionally used to make paper, cloth, or rope. Fiber crops are characterized by having a large concentration of cellulose, which is what gives them their Strength of materials, s ...

. It can reach over 25 meters in height, and it is not uncommon for climbing trees to be planted nearby to make harvesting the fruit and leaves both easier and safer. Indigenous people use the fibers of young leaves to weave into products such as nets, hammocks, bags, and other fabric and textile products. In most places where this fiber is used, the sale of products woven from these fibers to tourists is a major source of income, though there is great geographic variation in abundance and income received for products made from these fibers. In addition to the fibers, it is believed that the fruit and liquid

endosperm The endosperm is a tissue produced inside the seeds of most of the flowering plants following double fertilization. It is triploid (meaning three chromosome sets per nucleus) in most species, which may be auxin-driven. It surrounds the Embryo#Pla ...

within the seeds can help with fever reduction.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4811543

chambira The Chambira River is a major tributary of the Marañón River, and has been the traditional territory of the Urarina peoples for at least the past 350 years. Located in the Amazon jungle of Peru, otherwise known as the Selva, the Chambira is a tro ...

Trees of Peru Trees of Colombia Trees of Ecuador Trees of Venezuela Trees of Brazil Taxa named by Max Burret