Lata/nia.'] 
palmje. (I. B. Balfour.) 
381 
1. L. Commersonii, Grnel . Syst. viii. 1035. Palm 40 feet high. 
Petiole 4-6 feet long, slightly tomentose, the margins smooth, spiny 
in young plants ; blade 5-5f feet long, dark green above, paler 
beneath ; the segments lanceolate, acuminate, 2 feet long, 3f-3f in. 
broad, their margins entire, spiny in young plants ; veins and margins 
tinged with red. Male spadix 3-6 feet long, with 9-16 branches ; spikes 
7-10 in. long, f-i in. broad, arising in clusters of 4 to 20 from the end 
of the branch within the mouth of the spathe. “ Perianth £ in. long ; 
margin of segments fringed. Stamens 28-32. Rudimentary pistil 
small, pyramidal-trigonous ” {Mart.) Pemale spadix 3-6 feet long, 
with 8 or more branches, each bearing 3 spikes. Pree portion of bracts 
deltoid. Drupe globose, l|-lf in. diam. ; pyrenes obovoid, If- If in. 
long, marked with numerous ridges which pass from the base to the 
apex and then curve down again, a central ridge always most prominent. 
Seed with a light brown testa. Mart. Hist. Halm. iii. 223, t. 142, 154, 
161, ii ..figs. 1-9. L. plagsecoma, Comm. MSS. L. rubra, Jacq. Hragm. 
t. 8. L. borbonica, Lam. Hncycl. iii. 427. Cleophora lontaroides, 
Gcertn. Fruct. ii. 185, tab. 120, Jig. 1. 
Mauritius, in various parts of the island, but not abundant, Horne! Seychelles, 
but not indigenous, Horne ! Also Bourbon. Latanier or latanier rouge. 
2. L. Loddigesii, Mart. Hist. Halm. 224, t. 161, Jig. ii. 10-14. 
Palm 50 feet high. Petiole 3-4f feet long, tomentose, the margins 
entire in the mature, spiny in the young plant ; blade 3-5 feet long, 
very glaucous, the primary veins beneath slightly tomentose, and tinged 
with red, especially in young plants, the segments 2 feet long, under 3 
in. broad, unequally acuminate, the edges spiny in young plants. Male 
spadix 5J feet long, with 8-12 branches ; spikes 8-10 in long, f— T ? ¥ in. 
broad, arising in clusters of 3 to 9 from the end of the branches on a 
level with the mouth of the spathe. Perianth f- in. long; segments 
not fringed. Stamens 16 to 20 or more. Rudimentary pistil of 3-5 
grooved filaments nearly as long as the stamens. Pemale spadix 3^-4 
feet long, with 5-6 branches, each bearing 1 or 2 spikes. Drupe 
obovoid or pyriform, trigonous, 2\ in long, If in. broad ; pyrenes elon- 
gate-obovoid, faintly mucronate at the apex, lf-2f in. long, f-f- in. 
broad, with a central ridge along the convex face with tree-like 
branching in the upper third, the inner surface furnished with a central 
crest, usually lor only a part of its length. Seed with a dark brown 
testa. L. glaucophylla, Hort. Cleophora dendriformis, Lodd. MSS. 
Mauritius, on Round Island, Flat Island, and Coin de Mire,. Indigenous only 
in these islets, but introduced on the main land, Horne ! Endemic. 
3. L. Verschaffeltii, Lemaire, III. Hort. vi. t. 229. Palm 40 feet high. 
Petiole 5-8 leet long, densely tomentose, with entire orange margins, 
spiny in young planis ; blade pale green, 4|-5 feet long, the divisions 
2f feet long, above 2 in. broad, acuminate, the entire margins and veins 
beneath slightly tomentose. Male spadix 4-8 feet long, with 5-10 
branches exceeding the spathes in length ; spikes lf-2 feet long, f in. 
