Bactris rhaphidacantha is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is a shrub or palm tree with pinnate leaves, branching inflorescences, and orange-red fruits. The species is native to South America, and was described in 1965.
Taxonomy The species was described by Jan Gerard Wessels Boer in 1965.
Distribution Bactris rhaphidacantha is native to the wet tropical biome of northern Brazil (Amapá), French Guiana, and Suriname. It grows at elevations of , mostly on well-drained slopes.
Description Bactris rhaphidacantha is a subshrub, shrub, or palm tree. The stems are long, and wide. The stems can be solitary, or have up to three stems. The stems lack prickles, or have a few spines between the leaf attachment points.
The plant has eight to sixteen leaves, which form a funnel-shaped crown. The leaf stem is long. The leaves are pinnate. There are twenty-five to fifty-four pairs of pinnae, which are regularly arranged.
The inflorescences are branching, and have curved, long stems. The male flowers are around long, and have sepal lobes that are around long. The male flowers have four to seven stamens, and petals that are around long.
The female flowers are up to long. The calyx is cup-shaped, and long. The corolla is cup-shaped and long.
The fruits are wide, obovoid, orange-red, and have short black spines. The mesocarp is starchy, and the endocarp is turbinate.
Nomenclature In Portuguese, the species is known as .
References