Caroline ivory nut palm, Polynesian ivory palm
Metroxylon amicarum

Family: Arecaceae

What it is like

A solitary palm. It grows 20 m tall. There are normally old leaves around the trunk. There are widely spaced leaf scars on older trunks. The leaf crown is half round. The leaves are 5 m long with leaf stalks 1 m long. There are many leaflets 1 m long. They are dark green and grow at several angles giving a feathery appearance. The leaves are spiny. The trunk does not die after flowering. The flowering stalk arises amongst the leaves and hangs downwards as the fruit develop. The fruit are 12 cm long by 10 cm across. They have glossy brown scales. They are brown when ripe. The seeds have a hard kernel.

There are 5-8 Metroxylon species.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows on forested slopes and valleys in the mountains. It grows in standing water or wet locations. In the Cairns Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Australia, Caroline Islands, Chuuk, FSM, Guam, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, North Mariana Islands, Pacific, Pohnpei, SE Asia, Singapore, Truk Island

How it is used for food

Edible parts

Starch

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Rupung, Oahs, Oj, Rupwung

Synonyms

Coelococcus amicarum (H. Wendl.) W. Wight; Coelococcus carolinensis Dingler; Metroxylon amicarum var. commune Becc.; Metroxylon amicarum var. majus Becc.; Metroxylon carolinense (Dingler) Becc.; Sagus amicarum H. Wendl.;