''Mauritiella'' is a dioecious

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

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

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 ...

family found in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

where it is commonly called buriti. It is named after the similar and closely related genus ''

Mauritia ''Mauritia'' is a genus of fan palms which is native to northern South America and to the Island of Trinidad in the Caribbean. Only two species are currently accepted. References

Mauritia, Trees of South America Trees of Trinidad ...

''.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref>Uhl, Natalie W. and Dransfield, John (1987) ''Genera Palmarum - A classification of palms based on the work of Harold E. Moore''. Lawrence, Kansas: Allen Press. / Govaerts, R. & Dransfield, J. (2005). World Checklist of Palms: 1-223. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Four species are recognized: * '' Mauritiella aculeata'' (Kunth) Burret - Venezuela, southeastern Colombia, northwestern Brazil * ''

Mauritiella armata ''Mauritiella armata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is found in South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smal ...

'' (Mart.) Burret - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname * '' Mauritiella macroclada'' (Burret) Burret - western Ecuador, western Colombia * '' Mauritiella pumila'' (Wallace) Burret - southwestern Venezuela, southeastern Colombia

Description

From 7.5 to 18 m tall, the trunks are clustering and armed with small spines, usually with stilt

root In vascular plants, the roots are the plant organ, organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often bel ...

s at the base. ''A. aculeata'' tends to be smaller, with trunk diameters around 10 cm, ''M. armata'' and ''M. macroclada'' trunks reach 25 – 30 cm; all three retain persistent leaf bases towards the top of the stem. Each 1 m

leaf A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the plant stem, stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leav ...

of a mature tree is palmate with a brief costa, borne on a long petiole, and divided into numerous, deep segments; leaves of juvenile trees are flattened and much less divided. Bright to deep green, the foliage has silvery, glaucous undersides.Riffle, Robert L. and Craft, Paul (2003) ''An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms''. Portland: Timber Press. / The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

is usually solitary, interfoliar, with male and female units represented in separate plants. The round

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

is usually one-

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

ed and covered in red to brown scales with a thick, fleshy mesocarp. The seed is spherical or oblong, basally attached, with an elongated apical knob.

Distribution and habitat

''Mauritiella'' palms are found throughout South America's northern half on

mountains A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

, alongside

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

s and watercourses, in

rain forest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

and in cleared or open

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

. ''M. aculeata'' grows on the banks of the

Orinoco The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers approximately 1 million km2, with 65% of it in Venezuela and 35% in Colombia. It is the List of rivers by discharge, f ...

and its tributaries in

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 ...

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 ...

, and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, ''M. macroclada'' inhabits the western slopes of the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

in Colombia and

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 ...

to an elevation of 900 m, with ''M. armata'' (locally known as ''aguajillo'') being the most widespread, found throughout

Amazonia The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin encompasses , of which are covered by the rainf ...

and adjacent uplands, alongside streams and rivers. Usually found at low elevations, ''M. armata'' also thrives in mountainous

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

to elevations of 1400 m. In habitat, the leaves are used in roof construction and the fruit is eaten.

References

External links

''Mauritiella'' on NPGS/GRIN

Fairchild Guide to Palms

GBIF portal

Image at DOL.org
{{Taxonbar, from=Q143795 Calamoideae Arecaceae genera Dioecious plants Trees of South America Taxa named by Max Burret