Arecaceae
Chelyocarpus Dammer.
Kingdom: Plantae Rank: Genus Parent: Arecaceae Status: Valid
Vegetative Morphology
Habit: Palms solitary to 8 m tall, rarely growing in clusters.
Leaves: Leaves palmate to 1 m diameter, with many segments, each segment with two lobes, lightly glaucous below.
Reproductive Morphology
Inflorescence: The inflorescence bract (spathe) covered with a light-colored woolly pubescence on the exterior.
Fruit: Fruit brown when mature.
Infructescence: Infructescence 24 cm.
Seeds: Seed one per fruit.
Other
Uses: Natives in Colombia burn, cook, and filter the stems to extract vegetable salt that is mixed with “ambil de tobacco.”
Distribution: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil.