Specimen image via iDigBio · CC0
Lodoicea
Sign in to saveLodoicea, commonly known as the sea coconut, coco de mer, or double coconut, is a monotypic genus in the palm family. The sole species, Lodoicea maldivica, is endemic to the islands of Praslin and Curieuse in the Seychelles, and was historically found on the neighboring small islets of St Pierre, Chauve-Souris, and Ile Ronde. The species has the largest seed in the plant kingdom.
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 9
- With media
- 4
- Family
- Arecaceae
- Collections
- USCH, MNHN, B
- Recorded in
- United States, Cultivar, Seychelles, [Seychelles]
~20 min read
Encyclopedic overview
21 sectionsContents
- Taxonomy
- Description
- Habit
- Leaves
- Flowers
- Inflorescence
- Fruit
- Habitat
- Phylogeny
- Dispersal
- Geologic drift-dispersal hypothesis
- Oceanic dispersal hypothesis
- Evolution of the coco de mer fruit's size
- History and mythology
- Uses
- Threats
- Conservation
- Gallery
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Lodoicea, commonly known as the sea coconut, coco de mer, or double coconut, is a monotypic genus in the palm family. The sole species, Lodoicea maldivica, is endemic to the islands of Praslin and Curieuse in the Seychelles, and was historically found on the neighboring small islets of St Pierre, Chauve-Souris, and Ile Ronde. The species has the largest seed in the plant kingdom.
==Taxonomy== The name of the genus Lodoicea was given by Philibert Commerson, without any explanation for its etymology. It may be derived from Lodoicus, a Latinised form of Louis (typically Ludovicus), in honour of King Louis XV, while other sources say that Lodoicea is from Laodice, the daughter of Priam and Hecuba.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Lodoicea” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.