Coccothrinax jimenezii
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| Coccothrinax jimenezii | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Arecales |
| Family: | Arecaceae |
| Genus: | Coccothrinax |
| Species: | C. jimenezii |
| Binomial name | |
| Coccothrinax jimenezii | |
Coccothrinax jimenezii is a fan palm which is endemic to the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean. First formally described in 2013, the species is only known from two small populations, and is considered critically endangered.[2]
A slender palm, Coccothrinax jimenezii can grow to be 5 metres (16 ft) high. Its leaves have sheathing leaf bases which wrap around the stem. These leaf sheaths are 11–13 centimetres (4.3–5.1 in) and lack spines. The petiole length can range from 20 to 42 centimetres (7.9 to 16.5 in), but is usually 33 to 34 centimetres (13.0 to 13.4 in) long. The leaf leaves are palmately compound, is made up of 21–28 leaf segments which are 24–33 centimetres (9.4–13.0 in) long and 1–2 centimetres (0.39–0.79 in) wide and covered with whitish hairs. The entire leaf is 51–77 centimetres (20–30 in) long.[2]
Taxonomy
Coccothrinax has a circum-Caribbean distribution, with most of its diversity in species endemic to the islands of Cuba and Hispaniola. The genus is considered "taxonomically difficult", and in need of a complete taxonomic treatment. Of the 39 accepted species of Coccothrinax in Cuba, 38 are endemic to the island; one species, C. fragrans is also found on the island of Hispaniola.[3] Coccothrinax jimenezii was formally described in 2013 based on specimens collected by Dominican botanists Ricardo García & Milcíades Mejía in 2010, and named in honour of Dominican botanist Francisco Jiménez Rodríguez.[4]
Based on DNA microsatellite markers the Haitian and Dominican populations appear to be sufficiently different that Brett Jestrow and colleagues recommended that the two populations should be managed separately for conservation purposes, and that individuals should not be transferred from one population to the other.[5]