Iguanura myochodoides

Iguanura (ig-oo-ah-NOOR-ah) myochodoides (my-oh-koh-doh-EE-dehs)
Rare Palm Seeds.com
Scientific Classification
Genus: Iguanura (ig-oo-ah-NOOR-ah) Species: myochodoides (my-oh-koh-doh-EE-dehs)
Synonyms
None set.
Native Continent
Asia
Morphology
Habit: Clustering Leaf type: Bifid & pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
None.

Habitat and Distribution

Borneo. Sarawak, Kuching 1st Division. (Kiew R. 1976)/Palmweb.

Gunung Penrisen, Sarawak, Malaysia. Photo by Dr. John Dransfield, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.

Northern rainforests.

Description

Stem about 0.6 mtall, 3/4 cm thick. Annuli 1-3 cm apart. Crownshaft 26 cm long. Leaves abscissing. Leaf sheath 9-11 cm long. Petiole 11-13 cm long. Lamina 26-37 cm long and 13-18 cm wide, divided into 2-3 pairs of wide parallel·sided segments. Inflorescence among the leaves. Peduncle long. 13-20 cm and straight and 1-2 mm thick with a few. 4-6, short c. 7-9 cm, rachillae which scarcely diverge from the main axis. Male flowers with lobed anthers. Fruit ellipsoidal. longer?(1.5 cm) than wide (0.7 cm) with one central rib and with a lateral one on either?side. (Kiew R. 1976)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.

This species is distinct from others in possessing an erect inflor. with narrowly divergent short rachillae and by its fruits. Most species of Iguanura have an olive-shaped fruit or those that are elongate in shape are either bigibbous (I. bicornis) or curved (I. polymorpha, I. corniculata) but I. myochodoides takes its name from its peculiar fruit shape which is that of a giant mouse dropping. (Kiew R. 1976)/Palmweb.

Culture

Warm, sheltered and moist. Tropics or warm sub-tropics. Cold Hardiness Zone: 11

Comments and Curiosities

A rare, small palm from montane rainforests in Sarawak, on the island of Borneo that produces several thin stems, each one holding a sparse crown of spreading leaves with three or four broad, widely spaced leaflets per side. It is virtually unknown in cultivation but would adapt well to humid tropical, and some warm temperate climates, where it requires a protected spot under established canopy. (RPS.com)