Rhopalostylis

Rhopalostylis
	Flowers and fruit of R. sapida
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Liliopsida
Order:	Arecales
Family:	Arecaceae
Genus:	Rhopalostylis; H.Wendl. & Drude
Species
	Rhopalostylis baueri; Rhopalostylis sapida;

For the genus Rhopalostylis Klotzsch ex. Baill., of the family Euphorbiaceae, see its current synonym Dalechampia.

Rhopalostylis is a genus of two species of palms native to the South Pacific. Both are smooth-trunked, with regular ringed scars from fallen leaves. The leaves are 3-5 metres in length, and the leaf bases encircle the trunk. Rhopalostylis is closely related to the Lord Howe Island genus Hedyscepe.

Distribution

R. baueri occurs on Norfolk Island and the Kermadec Islands northeast of New Zealand; the Kermadec Islands population, formerly separated as R. cheesemanii, was included in R. baueri in 2005 after comparison revealed no significant differences. R. sapida, known as the Nikau Palm, is the only palm native to mainland New Zealand, and is found in lowland forests on the North Island, in coastal areas of the South Island as far south as Banks Peninsula, and on the Chatham Islands at 44 degrees South. R. sapida thus has the southernmost range of any palm genus.

Classification

Sub-family: Arecoideae; Tribe: Areceae; Subtribe: Archontophoenicinae. There are six other genera in the subtribe Archontophoenicinae, namely Actinokentia, Archontophoenix, Hedyscepe, Chambeyronia, Kentiopsis, and Mackeea.

References

de Lange, P.J.; Gardner, R.O.; Crowcroft, G.M.; Stalker, F.; Cameron, E.K.; Braggins, J.E; Christian, M.L. 2005: Vascular flora of Norfolk Island: some additions and taxonomic notes. New Zealand Journal of Botany 43: 563-596.
"Latest News (July 4, 2005): New names for the Kermadec nikau palm and Three Kings cabbage tree". New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
Kew palms checklist: Rhopalostylis