''Hemithrinax compacta'' is a 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 a

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 ...

that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Distribution and habitat

''Hemithrinax compacta'' flourishes on the

mogote A mogote () is a generally isolated, steep-sided residual hill in the tropics composed of either limestone, marble, or dolomite. Mogotes are surrounded by nearly flat alluvial plains. The hills typically have a rounded, tower-like form. Overv ...

s of Cuba. Mogotes are dome-shaped hills in Cuba made up of coral rock. ''Hemithrinax compacta'' is the only species in its genus in Cuba that grows in the highlands, at an elevation of . ''Hemithrinax compacta'' needs to have more than per year of rainfall and a mean temperature of .

Description

The leaves of the palm have an average length of and the inflorescence of the palm is tightly clustered, giving rise to the species name. A mature ''H. compacta'' can have a massive trunk of up to thick and more than in height. The genus ''Thrinax'' has been grown in gardens. In addition, in ''Thrinax'' the fruits are dispersed and eaten by

West Indian woodpecker The West Indian woodpecker (''Melanerpes superciliaris'') is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Cuba. Taxonomy and systematics The West Indian woodpecker ...

s and other birds, gray squirrels and lizards."Thrinax Compacta." Thrinax Compacta. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2014. .

References

compacta Trees of Cuba Endemic flora of Cuba Taxa named by August Grisebach Taxa named by Hermann Wendland {{tree-stub