1900 illustration of part of a drupe from a Pandanus eydouxia fruit-head.
A tall (10-12m) branching tree that forms a wide, domed canopy. The 20–25cm wide trunk is grey and cracked, while younger stems bear brown leaf-scars. The stems are lined with many small, sharp knobs.[3]
The leaves are long, drooping and glaucous-green to yellow-green with more brownish bases. Leaf margins are lined with tiny, mild, white spines that can age to a yellow or brown. The leaf midrib also has spines, but not near the base.
This species is most easily distinguished by its very large (20–25cm), rounded fruit-head, that is held up erect on a short peduncle that is densely covered in protective bracts. Each fruit-head holds 15-25 drupes, that are flat-topped and covered in stigmas, but otherwise variable in shape.
The half or third of the drupe, that is inside the fruit-head, becomes orange or red when ripe. Each drupe holds a large number (over 50) of carpels.[4][5][6]
Habitat
It is endemic to Mauritius, and is likely the most common endemic species still occurring on that island, especially in the wetter highlands. Large clumps can still be found by rivers and in thickets.[7]
↑ Vaughan RE, Wiehe PO (1953) The genus Pandanus in the Mascarene Islands. Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Botany 55(356): 1-33. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.1953.tb00001.x.
↑ Strahm, W.A. 1993. The conservation and restoration of the flora of Mauritius and Rodrigues. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis (2 vols.), Reading University, UK.
↑ Vaughan, R.E. and Wiehe, P.O. 1953. Flore des Mascareignes, Genus Pandanus. The Sugar Industry Research Institute, Mauritius, ORSTOM, Paris and RBG, Kew.
↑ Roskov Y., Abucay L., Orrell T., Nicolson D., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., DeWalt R.E., Decock W., De Wever A., Nieukerken E. van, Zarucchi J., Penev L., eds. (2018). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life, 20 December 2017. Digital resource at www.catalogueoflife.org/col. Species 2000: Naturalis, Leiden, the Netherlands. ISSN 2405-8858.
