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Exploring the Arecaceae Family: A Quiz on Palms

Test your knowledge about the Arecaceae family, commonly known as palms, with this engaging quiz that covers their classification, fossil history, and unique characteristics.

#Arecaceae #palms #botany #plant biology #fossils #tropical plants #species classification

1 What kind of animal is a Arecaceae?

2 What period do the fossils of the Arecaceae come from?

3 The ________ are generally small and white, radially symmetric, and can be either uni- or bi-.

4 There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 ________, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates.

5 Dragon's blood, a red resin used traditionally in medicine, varnish, and ________, may be obtained from the fruit of Daemonorops species.

6 What family does Arecaceae belong to?

7 Palms first appear in the fossil record around 80 million years ago, during the late ________ Period.

8 ________ may have the highest number of palm species in one country.

9 ________—palms able to withstand colder temperatures

10 What classis does Arecaceae belong to?

💡 Interesting Facts

  • the Colombian palm Aiphanes leiostachys is an endangered species, while two other Colombian endemics in the same genus, Aiphanes duquei and Aiphanes lindeniana, are vulnerable to extinction.
  • the Emberá in Panama use the hard, durable trunks of Dictyocaryum palms to construct coffins.
  • the palm Dictyosperma album (pictured) in the Mascarene Islands is commonly called "hurricane palm" because of its ability to withstand strong winds by easily shedding leaves.
  • the palm Aiphanes deltoidea, which occurs across a broad area encompassing parts of Colombia, Peru and Brazil, is present at such low densities that it is considered a rare species.
  • the palm Aiphanes chiribogensis is considered to be vulnerable to extinction because none of the seven known populations lie within Ecuador's network of protected areas.
  • the Haitian palm, Attalea crassispatha, is so rare that there were only 25 of them left in 1991.
  • the petioles of some species of Eugeissona palm trees can be used as darts in blowgun hunting.
  • the name of the palm genus Chelyocarpus, which means "turtle carapace fruit", refers to the cracked surface of its fruit.
  • the number of recognized species of palm trees in the genus Hydriastele has jumped from 9 to 48 in the last four years.
  • the discovery of a population of smaller, less spiny palms in Dominica has led to speculation that Aiphanes minima may not be the only species of Aiphanes on that island nation in the Caribbean.
  • the Central American palm, Schippia concolor, exhibits the unusual germination strategy of transferring all resources from the seed to the seedling before any shoot growth occurs.
  • the stems of the neotropical palm genus Cryosophila are covered with spines that are actually modified roots.
  • the palm Actinorhytis calapparia is widely cultivated in Southeast Asia and Malesia, where local villagers attribute it magical or medicinal powers.
  • the palm tree Ptychococcus lepidotus is used in the New Guinea highlands to make bows and arrows.
  • Lytocaryum weddellianum, an endangered species of palm trees endemic to Brazil, may be saved from extinction as it has become a common potted plant in Europe.
  • Myrialepis paradoxa, a species of palm trees native to Southeast Asia, is used to make thatched baskets.
  • Aiphanes bicornis, a palm species known only from two locations in Ecuador, is named for the notched tips of its leaves which are said to evoke the horns of an antelope.
  • Berbak National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia, forms part of the largest undisturbed swamp forest in southeastern Asia, and the peat swamp forest with the greatest number of palm species.
  • stems and sheaths of Korthalsia palm trees, named after Dutch botanist P. W. Korthals who first collected them from Indonesia, can be made into rope.
  • Polyandrococos, a genus of palm trees endemic to Brazil, is so named partly because of its hairy tomentum.
  • a fossil flower of the extinct palm Roystonea palaea shows damage possibly made by a bat or bird.
  • it has been suggested the extinct palm genus Palaeoraphe was restricted to the Greater Antilles.
  • salt can be extracted from the burned trunks of the Amazonian palm Itaya amicorum.
  • during his study of the palm family, Harold E. Moore collected all but 18 of the approximately 200 genera of palms, and earned membership in The Explorers Club.
  • despite its bitter taste, the heart of the palm tree Plectocomiopsis geminiflora is a delicacy in Borneo.
  • although the name of the palm genus Aiphanes means "always conspicuous", many of its species are actually small plants which are inconspicuous in the forest understorey.
  • fossil evidence suggests that the palm tribe Cryosophileae evolved in the northern hemisphere and that its presence in South America reflects later migration southward.
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