Chamaedorea pauciflora

Chamaedorea pauciflora
Mart.

Original
reference:
Hist. nat. palm. 2: 5 (1823)

Morphology:
Understorey palm. Stem solitary, to 2.5 m tall, 0.5-2 cm in diameter, erect or procumbent, green. Leaf sheath 15-30 cm long, closed for up to 1/3 of its length; blade simple or rarely pinnately divided, 40-80 cm long and 20-35 cm wide. Inflorescences interfoliar, emerging from the closed part of the sheath, to 80 cm long; peduncular bracts 3-4, tubular; male inflorescences to 8 per node, unbranched, erect, green, with orange flowers; female inflorescences single at the nodes, unbranched, erect, first green, later yellow to orange. Fruits black, 10-12 x 7-8 mm.

Distribution:
Throughout the W Amazon region in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and W Brazil. Frequent in the lowlands of E Ecuador at elevations between 300 and 700 m, rarely up to 1000 m, in the understorey of undisturbed and slightly disturbed forest.

Common
names:
Desodorante de indígena
–
Spanish
(H. Balslev #4833 ).

Huá-có
–
Siona, Secoya
(H. Balslev #4833 ).

Inglis panga
–
Quichua
(H. Balslev #62500 ).

Macana panga
–
Quichua
(F. Skov #60124 ).

Wako
–
Siona, Secoya
(W.T. Vickers #97 ).

Yaun
–
Shuar
(B. bergmann #97826 ).

Uses:

Leaves are used for thatch
(F. Skov #60124 ).

The inflorescence is used for perfume
(H. Balslev #4833 and additional references).

Synonym
list
(8)

Specimen
list