Arecaceae

Plant Profile

Areca guppyana

(ah-REHK-ah) (guhp-pih’-YAH-nah)

Areca novohibernica

Subfamily Arecoideae

Tribe Areceae

Subtribe Arecinae

“The species is native to the Bismarck Archipelago and the Solomon Islands where it grows in the pluvial forests. The name of the genus is the Latinization of the local name of an Indian species belonging to the genus; the name of the species refers to the origin place of the first specimen described, the island of Nova Hibernia (New Ireland) in the Bismarck Archipelago.

The Areca novohibernica (Lauterb.) Becc. (1914) is an unarmed monoecious species with thin single stem, 3-6 cm of diameter, erect, 2-4 m tall, on which are visible the rings, spaced of 3-4 cm, trace of the attachment of the fallen leaves; it has at the base robust aerial roots which develop like stilts.” – Palmpedia

“The native range of this species is Bismarck Archipelago to Solomon Islands. It is a shrub or tree and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.” – Kew

Origin Map from Kew Royal Botanic Gardens