Calamus sedens

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Calamus (KAL-ah-muhs)
sedens (seh'-dehn)
Calamus-sedens---Infructescene.jpg
Photo-Malaysian Biological Diversity
Scientific Classification
Genus: Calamus (KAL-ah-muhs)
Species:
sedens (seh'-dehn)
Synonyms
None set.
Native Continent
Asia
Asia.gif
Morphology
Habit: Solitary
Leaf type: Pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
rotan duduk

Habitat and Distribution

Kedah, Perak, Kelantan, Trengganu, Pahang, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Johore:
Photo-Malaysian Biological Diversity
Endemic.

Description

Short acaulescent or erect solitary non-climbing palm. Stems rarely exceeding 2 m long, without sheaths c. 4.5 cm diam., with sheaths to 6 cm diam., internodes 2–3 cm long. Leaf ecirrate; sheaths dull green, densely covered in paler green spines of varying length, to 4 cm long, but to 20 cm long and upward pointing around the leaf sheath mouth, dense brownish indumentum abundant between the spines, spines generally very sparse or absent below the petiole; knee absent; ocrea poorly defined; flagellum absent; petiole 60–100 cm long, armed along the margins with robust lateral spines to 4 cm long and scattered smaller spines on adaxial and abaxial surfaces; rachis to 2 m long; leaflets 20–30 on each side of the rachis, rather distant, broad and conspicuously plicate, the longest to 50 x 5 cm, the distalmost pair c. 15 x 2 cm and markedly divergent. Inflorescence lacking a flagellum, confusingly variable but the male and female nevertheless superficially similar, the male branched to 3 orders, the female to 2 orders; peduncle often to 60 cm long; primary bracts very conspicuous, longitudinally splitting, but remaining tubular near the base, enclosing the whole inflorescence or partial inflorescence, the bracts bright mid brown, armed with short spines near the base only and densely covered in bright brown indumentum, adaxially shining brown; inflorescences occasionally very short, not exceeding 20 cm including the peduncle; male rachillae very congested c. 0.6 x 0.1 cm, female rachillae usually less crowded to 4 x 0.4 cm. Mature fruit rounded, c. 0.8–1 cm diam., with a prominent beak to 0.15x 0.15 cm, and covered in 15–18 vertical rows of bright red-brown scales. Seed rounded, c. 0.8 cm diam., flattened on one side, with a hollow next to the attachment; endosperm homogeneous. Seedling leaf bifid with strongly divergent leaflets.

Solitary acaulescent or short stemmed palm, hardly climbing rarely more than 2 m tall. Stem without sheaths to about 4.5 cm in diameter with internodes 2-3 cm long. Stem with sheaths up to 6 cm in diameter. Sheaths dull green, densely covered in paler green spines of varying length, usually up to 4 cm long but much longer round the leaf sheath mouth where up to 20 cm long and upward pointing; sheath also densely covered with brownish scales between the spines; knee absent; spines usually sparser just below petiole. Ocrea ill-defined. Leaf ecirrate to 3 m long. Petiole 60-100 cm long armed with robust lateral spines to 4 cm long and scattered smaller spines on upper and lower surfaces. Leaflets 20-30 on each side of rachis, rather distant, broad and rather conspicuously plicate, to 50 cm long by 5 cm wide in mid-section of leaf, decreasing above, the uppermost pair about 15 cm long by 2 cm wide, markedly diverging. Inflorescence without flagellum, confusingly variable; peduncle often to 60 cm or more in length; in both male and female primary bracts exceeding and partly enclosing the whole inflorescence, bright mid-brown in colour armed with spines at the base only, densely scaly outside, shiny darker brown inside. Flowers small and densely crowded. Sometimes inflorescence very short, not more than 20 cm long including peduncle. Mature fruit rounded relatively small, to 8 mm diameter covered in 15-18 vertical rows of bright red-brown scales. Seed round with thin sweet sarcotesta; endosperm homogeneous. Seedling leaf bifid, with noticeably divergent leaflets. (J. Dransfield, A Manual of the rattans of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records 29.. 1979)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.

Calamus sedens is commonest on lower hillslopes in hill Dipterocarp forest & upper hill Dipterocarp forest at altitudes up to 1,100 m. It is rare in the lowlands. It appears to avoid ridgetops except in montane areas where ridgetops catch mist. This is an extremely distinctive and interesting rattan. That many specimens are incorrectly determined as Daemonorops in the herbarium suggest that botanists confuse the large inflorescence bracts with those of Daemonorops section Cymbospatha. However in Calamus sedens and other members of section Platyspathus, though the bracts are large and split longitudinally, they do not fall early as in section Piptospatha of Daemonorops and the bracts have free tips rather than all being enclosed inside the tip of the outermost one as in Daemonorops section Cymbospatha. The combination of solitary short-stemmed rattan with ecirrate leaves with broad plicate leaflets is strongly diagnostic of this species. (J. Dransfield, A Manual of the rattans of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records 29.. 1979)/Palmweb.

Culture

Comments and Curiosities

Etymology: Sedens - sitting, from the Malay name.

Uses: Stem rarely used in making walking sticks.



External Links

References

Phonetic spelling of Latin names by edric.

Special thanks to Geoff Stein, (Palmbob) for his hundreds of photos.

Special thanks to Palmweb.org, Dr. John Dransfield, Dr. Bill Baker & team, for their volumes of information and photos.

Glossary of Palm Terms; Based on the glossary in Dransfield, J., N.W. Uhl, C.B. Asmussen-Lange, W.J. Baker, M.M. Harley & C.E. Lewis. 2008. Genera Palmarum - Evolution and Classification of the Palms. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. All images copyright of the artists and photographers (see images for credits).


Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.

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