Bactris hirta is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is a shrub or tree, with black and brown spines, and red fruits.
Bactris hirta is native to South American rainforests, and was described in 1826. The IUCN lists the species as of least concern.
Taxonomy Bactris hirta was described in 1826, by Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius.
Distribution Bactris hirta is native to the wet tropical biome of South America (Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela). It grows in lowland rainforests, on non-inundated soils.
The species occurs at elevations of .
Description Bactris hirta is a shrub or palm tree, that grows up to high. It has black and brown spines up to long.
The leaves are simple, and the leaf edges are smooth. The leaves are long, and wide.
The inflorescences have long stems, which may or may not have spines. The male flowers are long, and the female flowers are long. The calyx is long. The corolla is a long tube, covered in long brown hairs.
The fruits are round, wide, and can be orange, red, or black in colour.
Ecology The South American tapir eats Bactris hirta.
Conservation In 2018, Bactris hirta was listed as a species of least concern on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List. The species faces no major threats. Due to its wide distribution, the population is assumed to be large.
Uses Bactris hirta is used for food.
Nomenclature In Portuguese, Bactris hirta is known as , , , or .
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