Pandanus elatus
| Pandanus elatus | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Pandanales |
| Family: | Pandanaceae |
| Genus: | Pandanus |
| Species: | P. christmatensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Pandanus elatus Ridl.[1] | |
Pandanus elatus is a dioecious tropical plant in the screwpine genus. It is endemic to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the north-eastern Indian Ocean. Its specific epithet comes from the Latin elatus (tall), in reference to its growth habit.[2]
Description
Pandanus elatus is an erect tree, with basal prop roots, that grows to 20 m in height. Its leaves grow to 3 m long and 100 mm wide, dark green and with marginal prickles. The plants do not form the densely tangled thickets that characterise P. christmatensis.[2]
Distribution and habitat
Found only on Christmas Island, the tree is found on deeper soils in the rainforest, sometimes in small groves.[2]
Taxonomy
The tree is closely related to P. leram Jones, of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the southern coasts of Sumatra and western Java.[2]
References
Notes
Sources
- Ridley, H.N. (1906). Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 45: 239. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - "Pandanus elatus Ridl.". Flora of Australia Online. Australian Biological Resources Study. 1993. Retrieved 2010-11-23.