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Functional traits play a key role in driving plant community effects on ecosystem function. We examined nine functional traits in various palm (Arecaceae) species and their relationships with moisture, tree-fall gaps, slope, and forest type at 29 transects (500×5 m) in the northeastern region of the Colombian Amazon. Redundancy analysis of mean trait values of species within a plot weighted by their abundance and Pearson correlations were used to evaluate the relationships between traits and environmental factors. The community trait composition was correlated with local environmental factors, which explained 23% of the trait variance. We detected functional dominance of the tallest palms in soils with high moisture and in floodplain forests (p ≤0.05). Palms with relatively long leaves were dominant in the flooded forests. Acaulescent and small palms were dominant on high slopes, and interra firmeforests, long-petioled palms were dominant in forest gaps. The number of seeds per fruit was not correlated with any environmental variable. Thus, hydrology is one of the main drivers of the functional composition of neotropical palm communities at the local scale, segregating tall palms with competitive and evasive strategies from small understory palms, which are mainly stress tolerant.

Mauritia flexuosa, Bactris gasipaes, and Oenocarpus bataua are among the main palms in the Amazon used for food and medicinal purposes. The food most commonly derived from these are fruits, oil, and the larvae of the insect Rhynchophorus palmarum reared in their trunks. Palm fruits are used for oil extraction as they are rich in saturated fatty acids, fiber, pro-vitamin A, carotenoids, tocopherols, macro and microelements, and polyphenols. Furthermore, the larvae of R. palmarum are rich in lipids, vitamin E, and proteins. This review analyzes the chemical composition of the fruit and oil of these palm species, as well as the R. palmarum larvae that breed in them. Our aim is to present information that is not widely known in order to demonstrate the potential of these palms as sources of plant-based and animal food with high nutritional and functional values.

Aim Palms are an iconic, diverse and often abundant component of tropical ecosystems that provide many ecosystem services. Being monocots, tree palms are evolutionarily, morphologically and physiologically distinct from other trees, and these differences have important consequences for ecosystem services (e.g., carbon sequestration and storage) and in terms of responses to climate change. We quantified global patterns of tree palm relative abundance to help improve understanding of tropical forests and reduce uncertainty about these ecosystems under climate change. Location Tropical and subtropical moist forests. Time period Current. Major taxa studied Palms (Arecaceae). Methods We assembled a pantropical dataset of 2,548 forest plots (covering 1,191ha) and quantified tree palm (i.e., ≥10cm diameter at breast height) abundance relative to co‐occurring non‐palm trees. We compared the relative abundance of tree palms across biogeographical realms and tested for associations with palaeoclimate stability, current climate, edaphic conditions and metrics of forest structure. Results On average, the relative abundance of tree palms was more than five times larger between Neotropical locations and other biogeographical realms. Tree palms were absent in most locations outside the Neotropics but present in >80% of Neotropical locations. The relative abundance of tree palms was more strongly associated with local conditions (e.g., higher mean annual precipitation, lower soil fertility, shallower water table and lower plot mean wood density) than metrics of long‐term climate stability. Life‐form diversity also influenced the patterns; palm assemblages outside the Neotropics comprise many non‐tree (e.g., climbing) palms. Finally, we show that tree palms can influence estimates of above‐ground biomass, but the magnitude and direction of the effect require additional work. Conclusions Tree palms are not only quintessentially tropical, but they are also overwhelmingly Neotropical. Future work to understand the contributions of tree palms to biomass estimates and carbon cycling will be particularly crucial in Neotropical forests.

Aim: Pleistocene (2.58 Ma–11.7 ka) climatic fluctuations have shaped intraspecific genetic patterns worldwide; however, their impact on species in many regions remains unknown. In order to determine the impact of Pleistocene climatic fluctuations on the tropical rain forests of western Ecuador, we explored the evolutionary history of the endemic palm Phytelephas aequatorialis. Location: Western Ecuador, north-western South America. Taxon: Phytelephas aequatorialis (Arecaceae). Methods: One hundred and seventy-six nuclear genes were sequenced in 91 individuals for phylogenomic and population structure analyses. The time of divergence between identified genetic lineages was estimated using a coalescent phylogenomic analysis. Palaeoecological niche modelling analyses were performed to determine areas of historical climatic suitability since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 22 ka) that potentially acted as forest refugia during the Pleistocene. A Wilcoxon test and Pearson correlations were used to explore how current levels of genetic diversity, in terms of expected heterozygosity (Hs), have been shaped by several palaeoclimatic and geographic factors. Results: Phylogenomic and population structure analyses revealed two main genetic lineages with a north–south distribution, which diverged 1.14 Ma during the Pleistocene. Two potential Pleistocene refugia were identified, one along the Pacific coast of Ecuador and one in the Andean foothills of south-western Ecuador. The location of these refugia agrees with the spatial location of the two genetic lineages. Within the Andean foothills, Hs was lower for the southern lineage than for the northern lineage. Hs significantly increased with decreasing latitude across the species as a whole. Main conclusions: Pleistocene climatic fluctuations promoted intraspecific divergence in P. aequatorialis within the rain forests of western Ecuador. The Andean foothills of south-western Ecuador could be an important area for rain forest evolution because they potentially remained climatically suitable throughout the Pleistocene. Lower genetic diversity in the southern lineage, which apparently remained isolated in the Andean foothills during glacial cycles, adds evidence to the presence of a forest refugium in south-western Ecuador. The geographic pattern in genetic diversity suggests that P. aequatorialis colonized western Ecuador from the north. This study supports the role of Pleistocene climatic fluctuations in promoting intraspecific divergence, and for the first time, we show their impact west of the Andes.

Environmental heterogeneity across the landscape can cause lineage divergence and speciation. The Geonoma macrostachys (Arecaceae) species complex has been proposed as a candidate case of ecological speciation in Amazonia due to evidence of habitat partitioning and pre-zygotic reproductive barriers between co-occurring morphotypes at a local scale. In this study, we provide a continent-wide perspective of the divergence patterns in G. macrostachys by integrating data from morphological traits, target sequence capture, climate, soil and reproductive biology. A morphometric analysis revealed four morphogroups, defined by traits related to leaf shape. A coalescence-based phylogenetic analysis did not recover the morphogroups as monophyletic, indicating independent evolution of leaf shape across geographical space. We demonstrate scale-dependent habitat differentiation for two of the morphogroups, in which segregation driven mostly by climate was complete at the regional scale but incomplete at the continental scale. Contrary to previous evidence of reproductive isolation in the form of different pollinators and flowering times between sympatric G. macrostachys forms in Peru and Ecuador, these were not found in Colombia, suggesting reproductive barriers have evolved multiple times across its geographical range. Taken together, our findings suggest that ecological divergence and local adaptation is driving diversification in G. macrostachys, and that hyperdiverse regions such as Amazonia are probable arenas for ecological divergence in sympatry.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Identifying the processes that generate and maintain biodiversity requires understanding of how evolutionary processes interact with abiotic conditions to structure communities. Edaphic gradients are strongly associated with floristic patterns but, compared with climatic gradients, have received relatively little attention. We asked (1) How does the phylogenetic composition of palm communities vary along edaphic gradients within major habitat types? and (2) To what extent are phylogenetic patterns determined by (a) habitat specialists, (b) small versus large palms, and (c) hyperdiverse genera? METHODS: We paired data on palm community composition from 501 transects of 0.25 ha located in two main habitat types (non-inundated uplands and seasonally inundated floodplains) in western Amazonian rain forests with information on soil chemistry, climate, phylogeny and metrics of plant size. We focused on exchangeable base concentration (cmol+ kg-1) as a metric of soil fertility and a floristic index of inundation intensity. We used a null model approach to quantify the standard effect size of mean phylogenetic distance for each transect (a metric of phylogenetic community composition) and related this value to edaphic variables using generalized linear mixed models, including a term for spatial autocorrelation. KEY RESULTS: Overall, we recorded 112 008 individuals belonging to 110 species. Palm communities in non-inundated upland transects (but not floodplain transects) were more phylogenetically clustered in areas of low soil fertility, measured as exchangeable base concentration. In contrast, floodplain transects with more severe flood regimes (as inferred from floristic structure) tended to be phylogenetically clustered. Nearly half of the species recorded (44 %) were upland specialists while 18 % were floodplain specialists. In both habitat types, phylogenetic clustering was largely due to the co-occurrence of small-sized habitat specialists belonging to two hyperdiverse genera (Bactris and Geonoma). CONCLUSIONS: Edaphic conditions are associated with the phylogenetic community structure of palms across western Amazonia, and different factors (specifically, soil fertility and inundation intensity) appear to underlie diversity patterns in non-inundated upland versus floodplain habitats. By linking edaphic gradients with palm community phylogenetic structure, our study reinforces the need to integrate edaphic conditions in eco-evolutionary studies in order to better understand the processes that generate and maintain tropical forest diversity. Our results suggest a role for edaphic niche conservatism in the evolution and distribution of Amazonian palms, a finding with potential relevance for other clades.

The vegetable ivory palms (Phytelepheae) form a small group of Neotropical palms whose phylogenetic relationships are not fully understood. Three genera and eight species are currently recognized; however, it has been suggested that Phytelephas macrocarpa could include the species Phytelephas seemannii and Phytelephas schottii because of supposed phylogenetic relatedness and similar morphology. We inferred their phylogenetic relationships and divergence time estimates using the 32 most clock-like loci of a custom palm bait-kit formed by 176 genes and four fossils for time calibration. We additionally explored the historical biogeography of the tribe under the recovered phylogenetic relationships. Our fossil-dated tree showed the eight species previously recognized, and that P. macrocarpa is not closely related to P. seemanii and P. schottii, which, as a consequence, should not be included in P. macrocarpa. The ancestor of the vegetable ivory palms was widely-distributed in the Chocó, the inter-Andean valley of the Magdalena River, and the Amazonia during the Miocene at 19.25 Ma. Early diversification in Phytelephas at 5.27 Ma can be attributed to trans-Andean vicariance between the Chocó/Magdalena and the Amazonia. Our results support the role of Andean uplift in the early diversification of Phytelephas under new phylogenetic relationships inferred from genomic data.

Endemicity is important for the delimitation of conservation areas. Endemic areas are those that contain two or more taxa with their distribution restricted to the area. The aim of this study was to detect endemic areas for palms in the Amazon region and to determine whether the species that define these endemic areas are protected within conservation units. Records of occurrence were extracted from the global biodiversity information facility (GBIF). The final dataset consisted of 17,310 records, for 177 species of Amazonian palms. For analysis we used parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE) and NDM-VNDM program, and grid square size of 1A degrees and 3A degrees as operational geographic units (OGUs). The distribution of endemic species was superimposed on occurrence of the conservation units (CUs). PAE did not show endemic areas in grid squares of 1A degrees, but found 10 palm endemic areas in grid squares of 3A degrees in the western Amazon and Andean sub-region. However, the NDM-VNDM program identified an endemic area in grid squares of 1A degrees located at the eastern Guiana with endemicity score = 2.9, and in grid squares of 3A degrees it identified seven consensus areas with endemicity score > 6.0, all in the western Amazon. The combination of PAE and NDM-VNDM analyses resulted in eight endemic palm areas in the combined western Amazon and Andean sub-region. Of the species that define the endemic areas, five are threatened with extinction in one of three IUCN categories (EN, VU, NT), and they are not protected in any conservation units. The western Amazon, besides having high palm richness, also has palm endemic areas, especially, near the Andean sub-region and the Peruvian Amazon.

Western Amazonia is a global biodiversity hotspot that encompasses extensive variation in geologic, climatic, and biotic features. Palms (Arecaceae) are among the most diverse and iconic groups of plants in the region with more than 150 species that exhibit extraordinary variation of geographical distributions, regional abundance patterns, and life history strategies and growth forms, and provide myriad ecosystem services. Understanding the ecological and evolutionary drivers that underpin palm distribution and abundance patterns may shed light on the evolution and ecology of the tropical forest biomes more generally. Edaphic conditions, in particular, are increasingly recognized as critical drivers of tropical plant diversity and distributions but data deficiencies inhibit our understanding of plant–soil relationships at broad scales, especially in the tropics. We present data from 546, 0.25‐ha (5 × 500 m) georeferenced transects located throughout western Amazonia where all individual palms were identified, counted, and assigned to a life‐history stage. Several environmental covariates were recorded along each transect and surface soil samples were collected from multiple points in N = 464 of transects. Altogether, the transects include 532,602 individuals belonging to 135 species. Variation among transects in terms of palm species richness and abundance is associated with major habitat types and soil properties. The soil properties including pH, acidity, all macronutrients for all samples, and texture, carbon, nitrogen, and micronutrients for some transects vary substantially across the study area, providing insight to broad‐scale variation of tropical surface soils. The data provided here will help advance our understanding of plant distributions and abundance patterns, and associations with soil conditions. No copyright restrictions are associated with this data set but please cite this paper if data are used for publication.

Summary Understanding the responses of individual plant species along different edaphic gradients is a key question in ecology, with implications to community assembly, functioning of forest ecosystems, niche theory, and conservation planning. In tropical rain forests, responses to soil nutrients have been described only for a handful of species. Even abundant and conspicuous components of the forest, such as the palms (Arecaceae), are largely unknown in this respect. We inventoried all palm species and analysed soil chemistry in 96 sites across western Amazonia to (i) assess the relative importance of some micronutrients vs. macronutrients as drivers of patterns in palm species composition, (ii) model the response shapes of 61 palm taxa and of canopy vs. understory palms along gradients of selected soil nutrients, (iii) determine if the response shapes of conspecific palm varieties differ in relation to the most important observed soil nutrient, and (iv) assess if the rank-order of the most abundant canopy species changes along edaphic gradients. Patterns in palm species composition were best explained by Mehlich-III extractable exchangeable bases (Ca, K, Mg) and phosphorus (P), with the different palm species clearly separating along the soil cation concentration gradient. All 61 palm taxa exhibited statistical responses along soil nutrient gradients. Response shapes in relation to exchangeable bases varied among bimodal skewed (51% of species), unimodal skewed (47%), and monotonic (2%). There were no significant differences between canopy vs. understory species in their mean response shapes to the exchangeable bases, but canopy species had significantly higher mean optimum value for soil P and greater mean niche width along the Ca, K, Mg, P, and boron (B) gradients. Varieties of the same species of Bactris, Desmoncus and Geonoma generally had different response shapes and different optima for the exchangeable bases. Synthesis: Among the soil variables we studied, macronutrients (especially exchangeable bases and P) emerged as more important than micronutrients in predicting species abundances in palm communities of western Amazonian non-inundated forests. Non-gaussian responses were predominant, conspecific palm varieties exhibited different response types, and the rank-order of dominance of canopy palms varied along the gradients of exchangeable bases and P. Together, these findings advance niche theory about palms and may be used for generating better predictive models of palm species distributions and for experimental studies that search for the physiological mechanisms underlying inter- and infra-specific trade-offs along edaphic gradients. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Palms are one of the most important plant families to rural communities, contributing to subsistence and daily livelihoods. Several studies have investigated the usefulness of palms among adult populations. However, data concerning local knowledge of children are rare or lacking. The objective of this study was to document knowledge about palms among children in Bolivia and to improve understanding of the process of knowledge accumulation. Nine communities inhabited by three different ethnic groups in two different areas were studied. Overall, 290 children 6–13 years old were interviewed. Data gathering was divided into: semi-structured interviews; informal walks in the forest; and drawing sessions. Statistical analyses were performed in R. In total, 521 different palm uses were reported for 27 palm species in nine distinct categories. The highest number of uses was reported for Attalea princeps, Bactris gasipaes, Oenocarpus bataua and Euterpe precatoria. The most common use categories were Human food, Construction, Utensils and tools, and Cultural uses. Our results show that the process of learning started early in childhood. Future ethnobotanical studies should focus on even younger children to understand better the process of knowledge accumulation.

Oenocarpus bataua is the seventh most abundant tree in the Amazon and one of the most used palms in the region. The main resource obtained from the species is the fruits that are harvested from wild populations for human consumption. Across its distribution area adults are most frequently felled to obtain the racemes, which may affect the palm’s populations. In this paper we studied the demography of two populations of Oenocarpus bataua to assess the harvest potential of its fruits and the density variation in different habitats in the western Amazon to estimate fruit yields in different forest types. Non-inundated lands held the greatest densities with an average of 11 adults ha−1 (0–132 adults ha−1). The population finite growth rate (λ) in Amacayacu, Colombia, was 0.9103 because of slow growth and low survival of stemless individuals and low recruitment. On the contrary, in Yasuni, Ecuador, we found a growing population with λ = 1.0368. According to our simulations, adult felling reduced transient population growth (λ t ) in both populations, especially when harvest was frequent even at low intensities. In Amacayacu a simulated harvest of 60 % year−1 of the fruits by climbing did not modify λ t substantially, while in Yasuni, a regime of 80 % of annual harvest did not diminish λ t below one and the initial number of adults. The results help to understand the demography of useful palms and to address sustainable management. For instance high yields can be obtained by shifting to non-destructive harvest techniques that can meet the increasing demand and maintain the populations.

Palms are most diverse in warm and humid regions near the equator. Though palms remain relatively well conserved, they are under increasing pressure from deforestation. Here, we analyze patterns of palm species richness relative to latitudinal gradient, sampling effort, and deforestation in the Amazon, and compare patterns of richness and floristic similarity among Amazonian sub-regions. We built a database of 17,310 records for 177 species. The areas with the greatest richness were in the western, central and northeastern Amazon, principally at latitudes 0-5ºS. Species richness and the number of records were highly correlated (R2=0.76, P2000 km2) were found in the southern and eastern Amazon of Brazil, which coincide with low richness and gaps in records. Similarity analyzes resulted in two groups of sub-regions: the first included the Amazon s.s., the Andes and the Guiana, while the second included the Plateau and Gurupi. We conclude that the highest species richness is at low latitudes, and observed richness is affected by sampling effort and is vulnerable to deforestation. Therefore, areas with low species richness, especially areas with data deficiency, need to be further studied for a better understanding of their patterns of diversity and richness.

Throughout SE Asia, palms are important in agroforestry systems and homegardens. Most species are used for multiple purposes based on both physical and nutritional properties of the palms. Except for a few commodities of worldwide importance such as palm oil and coconut, many palm products either do not figure in trade statistics, or they are merged with other products in a way, which makes it difficult to assess their importance. Here we focus on these products that are not prominent in national trade statistics and we review their sustainability and economic importance in SE Asia. We rank the most important palms according to their versatility, which is an extremely important property, especially for smallholders who practice subsistence agriculture. We conclude by listing a number of recommendations for future research directions based on experiences from the recently completed EU 7th Framework project (EU-PALMS 2009-2013).

Ethnopharmacological relevanceThis study is the first to demonstrate the breadth and patterns of the medicinal applications of African palms. It sheds light on species with the potential to provide new therapeutic agents for use in biomedicine; and links the gap between traditional use of palms and pharmacological evaluation for the beneficial effects of palm products on human health. Last but not least, the study provides recommendations for the areas that should be targeted in future ethno-botanical surveys.Aim of the studyThe primary objective of this survey was to assemble all available ethno-medicinal data on African palms, and investigate patterns of palm uses in traditional medicine; and highlight possible under-investigated areas.Materials and methodsReferences were found through bibliographic searches using several sources including PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar and search engines of the State and University Libraries of Aarhus, National Library of Denmark and Copenhagen University Libraries, Harvard University Libraries, and the Mertz Library. Information about ethno-medicinal uses of palms was extracted and digitized in a database. Additionally, we used an African palm distribution database to compute the proportion of palm species that have been used for medicinal purposes in each country.ResultsWe found 782 medicinal uses mentioned in 156 references. At least 23 different palm species (some remained unidentified) were used medicinally in 35 out of Africa׳s 48 countries. The most commonly used species were Elaeis guineensis, Phoenix dactylifera, Cocos nucifera, and Borassus aethiopum. Medicinal uses were in 25 different use categories of which the most common ones were Infections/Infestations and Digestive System Disorders. Twenty-four different parts of the palms were used in traditional medicine, with most of the uses related to fruit (and palm oil), root, seed and leaf. Palms were used in traditional medicine mostly without being mixed with other plants, and less commonly in mixtures, sometimes in mixture with products of animal origin. Future ethno-botanical surveys should be directed at the central African region, because palm species richness (and plant species richness in general) is particularly high in this area, and only few ethno-botanical studies available have focused on this region.ConclusionThe wide time span covered by our database (3500 years) shows that African palms have been used medicinally by many societies across the continent from time immemorial until today. Most medicinal use records for African palms were found in two categories that relate to most prevailing diseases and disorders in the region. By analyzing ethno-medicinal studies in one database we were able to demonstrate the value of palms in traditional medicine, and provide recommendations for the areas that should be targeted in future ethno-botanical surveys.

Palms are a natural resource that has been abundantly used by Amerindians for centuries. Only a few palm domestications have been reported in the American tropics, where there is great diversity of the Arecaceae family. We report the results of a survey combining ethnobotanical and ecological methods to study the past and present management and distribution of palms by the Ashaninka indigenous people from the Tambo river region in the Peruvian Amazon. Our objectives were to document palm-related traditional ecological knowledge, to examine correlation between palm abundance and Ashaninka management practices and social exchange of palm resources, and to address the question of how the Ashaninka have modified palm diversity and distribution in their territory. We found that most palm species have multiple uses; the most intensively managed were palms that provide thatch, notably Attalea phalerata, Oenocarpus mapora and Phytelephas macrocarpa. Of these, Attalea phalerata was the most commonly cultivated and was found only in cultivated stands. Our results have implications for understanding the domestication of Attalea weberbaueri, which is a landrace within the Attalea phalerata complex. A closer understanding of this process would require morphometric and genetic methods to compare wild and managed populations.

We studied the management of the fiber-producing chambira palm Astrocaryum chambira by indigenous people in the Colombian Amazon. Between 2009 and 2012, we visited four communities and two marketing centers, where we interviewed 12 people. In addition, we specifically observed A. chambira harvesting, processing, and commercialization; studied palm populations at five localities; measured leaf production rate; and integrated secondary data. At least 21 aboriginal groups in the Colombian Amazon use chambira fiber. The palm grows in association with human communities, and it has been widely used and managed in past agroforestry systems. The fiber is obtained from the unexpanded leaves of juvenile or adult palms, and harvesting is often unsustainable because of overharvesting acaulescent palms or of cutting down adult palms. This is leading to a depletion of palm population. Annual leaf production rate was 1.59-2.89 leaves/palm year−1, which is lower than that reported in other studies. Based in our results, we recommended a harvest of 1 leaf/palm year−1 in acaulescent palms, and 1-2 leaves/palm year−1 in stemmed palms. Chambira-derived products are mostly handicrafts for marketing, and their trade represents 40%-100% of artisan household cash income. Improving the management of chambira palms requires the introduction of non-destructive harvest techniques and a wider use of the palm in agroforestry systems. An analysis of traditional management practices and of the role of chambira among Amerindian people indicates that A. chambira was an incipient domesticate at the time of the European conquest.

The neotropical palm genus Wendlandiella (Arecoideae: chamaedoreeae) is here revised based on a thorough study of 119 samples deposited in 18 international herbaria, as well as the analysis...

Post-dispersal seed removal by ground-foraging frugivores promotes secondary dispersal of large seeds, reducing seed predation and increasing recruitment and regeneration. We studied how habitat disturbance influences seed removal patterns in the large-seeded palm Phytelephas aequatorialis within three habitats forming a continuum of disturbance (agroforestry system, disturbed forest, and less-disturbed forest) using seed removal experiments and camera trapping. We tested whether seed removal rates, and both richness and composition of seed remover communities varied between the habitats. On average, 15 seeds were removed under each tree in the agroforestry system over seven days, which was significantly lower compared to the disturbed forest (18) and the less-disturbed forest (19). Eight mammal species were identified removing seeds in the three habitats. On average, one mammal species removed seeds at each station in the agroforestry system, which was significantly lower than the two species observed in the two forests. The composition of seed remover communities was significantly different between the three habitats. Our results suggest that the loss of forest cover in the agroforestry system has reduced the richness of seed removers, which subsequently caused decreased removal rates. Nevertheless, this habitat could still maintain effective seed dispersal events because spiny rats were important seed removers. Our camera trap data should be taken as preliminary because we could only identify less than half of the animals responsible for seed removal. This study highlights the importance of medium- and large-sized rodents for the removal and effective dispersal of large seeds in disturbed tropical habitats.

The concepts of phylogenetic community structure (PCS) and phylogenetic niche conservatism (PNC) allow ecologists to address the role of species’ evolutionary history in community assembly. It is important to test the role of historical legacies relative to environmental constraints at local scales, where communities are assembled. We studied phylogenetic structure and niche conservatism for palms (Arecaceae) in the 64-km2 Ducke Reserve in the central Amazon, near Manaus. The 72 study plots, each covering 0.1 ha, were distributed regularly in a terra firme forest along a hydro-edaphic gradient. We compared the observed palm PCS with assemblages generated by null models. We also analyzed whether morphological and ecological traits are labile or conserved along the phylogeny and quantified the spatial structure of morphological traits in each plot. We found an overall neutral PCS in combination with low PNC (labile traits), suggesting that evolutionary history poses little constraint on palm community assembly in this Amazonian landscape. Still, there was a tendency towards phylogenetic overdispersion in bottomlands, suggesting competitive exclusion among close relatives or, more likely, environmental filtering acting on convergent traits that affect co-occurrence in flood-prone areas. We conclude that (1) PCS of local communities is random as a whole and morphological traits are overall labile, but that (2) the hydro-edaphic gradient within terra firme forests leads to differences in species co-occurrence so that closely related species occur less often than expected in bottomlands due to diffuse competition among close relatives or environmental filtering on convergent traits.

Stauffer, F.W., J. Eychenne, N. Ortega & H. Balslev (2019). Structural biology and evolution in the monotypic Amazonian palm Wendlandiella (Arecoideae: Chamaedoreeae) Candollea 74: 15–30. In English, English abstract. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15553/c2019v741a3The structural biology is here, for the first time, described in the Amazonian palm genus Wendlandiella Dammer, a poorly known and monotypic member of the early divergent tribe Chamaedoreeae Drude (Arecoideae). Wendlandiella gracilis Dammer includes three varieties: var. gracilis, var. polyclada (Burret) A.J. Hend., and var. simplicifrons (Burret) A.J. Hend. In contrast to the overwhelmingly monoecious condition in this subfamily, Wendlandiella together with the species-rich genus Chamaedorea Willd., presents a dioecious reproductive syndrome. The terrestrial root system, the leaves and the stems of Wendlandiella display a relatively simple architecture and vegetative multiplication observed in wild populations may be regarded as an important mechanism of reproduction. Flowers in Wendlandiella are arranged in a complex floral cluster known as acervulus, clearly deviating from the floral triad characterizing most other members of the subfamily. Our study describes the structure of the acervulus in inflorescences of both sexes. The lack of a nectariferous epithelium in the gynoecium and the pistillode suggests that Wendlandiella is wind pollinated, which is a rare pollination mechanism in palms. Wendlandiella is proposed as an interesting model to test the different evolutionary pathways to dioecy in palms.Received: September 14, 2018. Accepted: January 26, 2019. First published online: March 28, 2019.

Premise of the study Most palm systematists were surprised when molecular evidence pointed to a sister group relationship between the tribe Ceroxyleae and the phytelephantoid palms. The latter comprises three genera of morphological aberrant palms that have previously been considered a subfamily of their own. Here we present the results of a detailed study of the floral structure and development of the wax palm, Ceroxylon ceriferum, which aims at revealing derived traits shared by the sister tribes Ceroxyleae and Phytelepheae. Methods A series of floral stages were sampled from Ceroxylon ceriferum growing in the central coastal range of Venezuela. The samples were prepared for scanning electronic microscopy and serial anatomical sectioning. Key results The development of male and female flowers of Ceroxylon ceriferum was similar. The receptacle elongated early in the ontogeny. The perianth was differentiated into distinct sepals and petals and was characterized by a lack of postgenital fusion. The stamens were incepted centripetally in 2(-3) whorls. The outer whorl of three stamens was antesepalous. The inner whorl consisted of six stamens arranged in three antepetalous pairs. Conclusions The flowers of Ceroxylon ceriferum share a lack of postgenital fusion in the perianth with members of the tribe Phytelepheae. The elongation of the receptacle is reminiscent of the receptacle expansion in Phytelepheae. However, the multistaminate condition in C. ceriferum is less extreme than in the Phytelepheae, and the stamen initiation is centripetal as opposed to centrifugal in the latter.

The well-being of the global human population rests on provisioning services delivered by 12% of the Earth's â 1/4400,000 plant species 1. Plant utilization by humans is influenced by species traits 2-4, but it is not well understood which traits underpin different human needs 5. Here, we focus on palms (Arecaceae), one of the most economically important plant groups globally 6, and demonstrate that provisioning services related to basic needs, such as food and medicine, show a strong link to fundamental functional and geographic traits. We integrate data from 2,201 interviews on plant utilization from three biomes in South America - spanning 68 communities, 43 ethnic groups and 2,221 plant uses - with a dataset of 4 traits (leaf length, stem volume, fruit volume, geographic range size) and a species-level phylogeny 7. For all 208 palm species occurring in our study area, we test for relations between their traits and perceived value. We find that people preferentially use large, widespread species rather than small, narrow-ranged species, and that different traits are linked to different uses. Further, plant size and geographic range size are stronger predictors of ecosystem service realization for palm services related to basic human needs than less-basic needs (for example, ritual). These findings suggest that reliance on plant size and availability may have prevented our optimal realization of wild-plant services, since ecologically rare yet functionally important (for example, chemically) clades may have been overlooked. Beyond expanding our understanding of how local people use biodiversity in mega-diverse regions, our trait- and phylogeny-based approach helps to understand the processes that underpin ecosystem service realization, a necessary step to meet societal needs in a changing world with a growing human population., This study was funded by the European Union, 7th Framework Programme (FP7-PALMS-Contract no. 212631, to H.B.), and also supported by the Russell E. Train Education for Nature Program of the WWF, Anne S. Chatham Fellowship of the Garden Club of America, William L. Brown Center, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid travel grants programme, and a GSST fellowship of Aarhus University. J.-C.S. and B.G. were supported by the European Research Council (ERC-2012-StG-310886-HISTFUNC); C.H.S.-L. and N.R. by the People Programme (Marie Curie Actions) of the European Union's 7th Framework programme (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF-328637 - BiodiversityAltitude); W.D.K. by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (824.15.007) and the University of Amsterdam (starting grant); and H.B. by the Danish National Science Research Council (272-06-0476).

Sustainable management strategies for tropical forest ecosystems require a detailed understanding of the distribution of tropical forest species, limitations on distribution, as well as occurrence patterns in the absence of limitations. In the Americas, many tropical palms (Arecaceae) are locally abundant keystone species that provide a number of non-timber forest products. Here we focus on 10 such species (Aphandra natalia, Attalea phalerata, Euterpe oleracea, Iriartea deltoidea, Mauritia flexousa, Oenocarpus bataua, Phytelephas aequatorialis, Phytelephas macrocarpa, and Phytelephas seemannii) found in western South America. This study aimed to determine: (i) what variables control potential species distribution, (ii) whether their distribution is spatially constrained and if so, (iii) how their potential ranges compare to their actual ranges. We built species distribution models using Maxent software with three groups of predictor variables: C (climatic), N (non-climatic environmental), S (spatial), and combinations thereof: C, CN and CNS. The CNS predictor variable combination gave superior predictive ability based on median Area Under the Curve (AUC) values and was consistent with available range maps. In contrast, individual C and CN predictor variables gave inferior AUC values and showed less similarity to range maps. We concluded that the CNS model that combined climatic, non-climatic, and spatial variables best represented the actual distribution of the 10 palm species, whereas C and CN models approached their potential distribution. Precipitation during the driest quarter and annual precipitation were the most important predictors of the potential distribution, whereas temperature of the coldest month, soil, and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were less important. We found that the actual distributions of palm species were spatially constrained, and that the spatial variables largely coincided with the dispersal barriers of the Andean Cordillera and past climatic fluctuations. The estimated potential range varied from nearly equal to the actual range, to up to 0.55 × 106 km2 (55.1 × 106 ha) larger than the actual range, depending on model, threshold settings, and species. We thus concluded that current palm resources in the forests of western South America have major potential for ecological expansion. These results are relevant to current palm management and resource conservation planning, as well as future strategies that will have to address climate change and increasing human disturbance.

Phylogenetic information can provide important insight into the assembly of hyper-diverse tropical rainforest communities. The hierarchical nature and scale dependency of phylogenetic community structure can be used to disentangle complex networks of assembly mechanisms. Here, we outline how particular assembly mechanisms can be identified by analysing phylogenetic community structure on different scales related to space and environment. We present a case study on a large set of species-rich palm communities from the western Amazon basin. We aimed to elucidate the assembly of these communities by separating the roles of broad-scale biogeographic processes, habitat filtering and intra-habitat processes. Overall, we found phylogenetic clustering, which could be caused by a variety of different processes. When we reduced the species pool according to regions, habitats or soil sand content, we found that the structure was consistent with a combination of regional biogeographic differentiation, habitat filtering and within-habitat processes. The habitat filtering effect was strongest, although it varied in strength among communities in different habitats. Some phylogenetic structure could not be accounted for by biogeography or habitat, suggesting that intra-habitat processes such as micro-environmental filtering or biotic interactions also play a role. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, ••, ••–••.

Despite broadly overlapping geographic distributions in the central Amazon basin, two congeneric palm species ( Attalea attaleoides and Attalea microcarpa ) have topographically separated distributions on a local scale in Reserva Ducke near Manaus. Our aim here was to determine if this local scale separation can be linked to (1) seedling stage specialization to different habitat conditions of the two species, and/or (2) environmentally-controlled seed dispersal. We assessed the role of these potential drivers by mapping the local distribution of the two species over a 25-km 2 grid and testing for correlation to seed removal and seed germination patterns using seed sowing experiments. 360 seeds of each species were sown in 30 uniformly distributed plots (12 seeds of each species in each plot), and seed removal and germination were subsequently monitored. Adult populations of the two species showed opposite distribution patterns linked to topography. However, there was little evidence for specialization to different habitat conditions at the seedling stage: after 11 months, 26.1% of seeds of A. microcarpa had germinated along the entire topographic gradient, albeit with a tendency toward higher germination in more inclined areas. For A. attaleoides , only 2.2% seeds had germinated, and again along the entire topographic gradient. In contrast, there was evidence for environmentally-controlled seed dispersal: for both species, seed removal was higher in flat areas. Presence of adults did not affect germination or seed removal. Our results suggest that topographically differentiated distributions of A. attaleoides and A. microcarpa may be reinforced by steep slope avoidance by their seed dispersers. A direct environmental control mechanism remains to be identified to explain the consistent topographic associations, but our results show that this mechanism does not work at the seed germination stage.

Aim The relative importance of current climate and past historical legacies is hotly debated. Here, we assess their role in determining the global distribution and diversity patterns of palms (Arecaceae), a widespread, species-rich group of keystone ecological importance in tropical ecosystems. Location Global. Methods We assembled country-level species lists world-wide and compiled associated data on potential contemporary environmental drivers (current climate, habitat heterogeneity, area, and insularity), Quaternary glacial–interglacial climate change and major biogeographic regions to evaluate to what extent the global distribution and species richness patterns in palms reflect Quaternary climatic oscillations or regional effects reflecting pre-Quaternary legacies. We also assessed for the first time if historical legacies differ between continents and islands, providing novel insights into determinants of insular species richness. Results Palm species richness was significantly affected by Quaternary climate changes and further differed between biogeographic regions even when both current environmental conditions and Quaternary climate changes were accounted for. In contrast, global limits to the distribution of the palm family were best explained by current temperature while biogeographic regional differences were unimportant and Quaternary climate change caused only a small constraint. Historical legacies were weak on islands, with only a small regional effect and no effect of Quaternary climate changes. Main conclusions Strong historical legacies supplement current environment as determinants of palm species richness. These primarily comprise pre-Quaternary historical effects, reflected in low African species richness (possibly linked to pre-Quaternary extinctions) and outstandingly high Neotropical and Indomalayan palm species richness (possibly linked to these regions' long-term climatic suitability for palms). In contrast to species richness, the global distribution of the family range is largely in equilibrium with current climate. The small historical effects on islands are consistent with climatic buffering from their oceanic environment.

To advance our understanding of the processes that govern the assembly of palm communities and the local coexistence of numerous palm species, we here synthesize available information in the literature on species diversity and growth-form composition in palm communities across the Americas. American palm communities surveyed had 4–48 (median 16) species in study plots covering 0.09–7.2 ha. Climate, soils, hydrology, and topography are the main factors determining palm community species richness. Tropical lowland terra firme rain forests are the most species-rich whereas forests that are inundated or grow on sandy soils or in areas with seasonal climate have much fewer species. Palm communities in the central-western Amazon and in Central America are significantly richer than the average region and those in the Caribbean significantly poorer in species. As for branching, the 789 species of tropical American palms belong to Corner’s model (solitary, 268 species, 33%), Tomlinsons model (cespitose, 521 species, 66%) and Schoute’s model (dichotomous branching, three species

Background The palm family occurs in all tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. Palms are of high ecological and economical importance, and display complex spatial patterns of species distributions and diversity. Scope This review summarizes empirical evidence for factors that determine palm species distributions, community composition and species richness such as the abiotic environment (climate, soil chemistry, hydrology and topography), the biotic environment (vegetation structure and species interactions) and dispersal. The importance of contemporary vs. historical impacts of these factors and the scale at which they function is discussed. Finally a hierarchical scale framework is developed to guide predictor selection for future studies. Conclusions Determinants of palm distributions, composition and richness vary with spatial scale. For species distributions, climate appears to be important at landscape and broader scales, soil, topography and vegetation at landscape and local scales, hydrology at local scales, and dispersal at all scales. For community composition, soil appears important at regional and finer scales, hydrology, topography and vegetation at landscape and local scales, and dispersal again at all scales. For species richness, climate and dispersal appear to be important at continental to global scales, soil at landscape and broader scales, and topography at landscape and finer scales. Some scale–predictor combinations have not been studied or deserve further attention, e.g. climate on regional to finer scales, and hydrology and topography on landscape and broader scales. The importance of biotic interactions – apart from general vegetation structure effects – for the geographic ecology of palms is generally underexplored. Future studies should target scale–predictor combinations and geographic domains not studied yet. To avoid biased inference, one should ideally include at least all predictors previously found important at the spatial scale of investigation.

Tropical forests harbor thousands of useful plants that are harvested and used in subsistence economies or traded in local, regional or international markets. The effect on the ecosystem is little known, and the forests resilience is badly understood. Palms are the most useful group of plants in tropical American forests. This paper introduces a cross-disciplinary study of the effects of harvesting palm products from the tropical forests in north-western South America. The size of the resource is estimated through palm community studies in the different forest formations that determines the number of species and individuals of all palm species. The genetic structure of useful palm species is studied to determine how much harvesting of the species contributes to genetic erosion of its populations, and whether extraction can be made without harm. Almost all palm species are used in rural communities for subsistence purposes Quantitative ethno-botanical research in different forest types have identified thousands of different ways of using palms for food, construction, tool-making, etc. Although most palms are used by the person harvesting them, many are sold on local markets as fruits, fiber, tools, construction materials etc., and a few have reached larger markets, including international markets. Palm populations are managed in various ways of which some are sustainable and others are destructive. National level mechanisms that governs extraction, trade and commercialization of palm products, are used to identify positive and negative policies in relation to resilience of ecosystems.

Summary 1. Local and regional patterns of plant species richness in tropical rain forests, as well as their possible drivers, remain largely unexplored. The main hypotheses for local species richness (alpha diversity) are (i) local environmental determinism with species-saturated communities, and (ii) regional control, in which the immigration of species from the regional species pool (gamma diversity) determines how many species coexist locally. The species pool hypothesis suggests a combined influence of local and regional drivers on alpha diversity. Differences in gamma diversity may arise from divergent environmental conditions or biogeographic histories. 2. We investigated the cross-scale determinants of palm alpha and gamma diversity across the western Amazon using a large field-based data set: a census of all palm individuals in 312 transects, totalling 98 species. We used regression-based variation partitioning to understand how habitat, topography and region influence alpha diversity, and correlations to assess the importance of the present environment (climate, soil, regional topography) and history (long-term habitat stability) for average regional alpha diversity and gamma diversity, including the link between these two diversity measures (species pool effect). 3. Variation in alpha diversity was primarily explained by region (36%) and habitat (18%), whereas the effect of topography was negligible (1%). Within habitats, region was even more important (up to 69% explained variation). Within regions, habitat and topography covaried and had a variable but an important influence. The pure effect of topography remained of minor importance (up to 13%). 4. Average regional alpha diversity was related to gamma diversity, precipitation seasonality and possibly long-term habitat stability. Gamma diversity was related to long-term habitat stability, and possibly current climate. 5. Synthesis. Gamma diversity strongly influenced alpha diversity, although a clear influence of local environment was also evident, notably habitat type, with a minor, more geographically variable effect of small-scale topography. Apart from gamma diversity, the factor most strongly related to regional alpha diversity was precipitation seasonality, while gamma diversity itself was strongly linked to long-term habitat stability. These results imply that plant species richness is contingent on both contemporary and historical factors with a strong link between local species richness and the regional species pool.

We reviewed information on management of useful palms in South America. We documented management for 96 species, from incidental activities intended to increase populations of wild palms to the inclusion of palms in complex agroforestry systems. Two species, Bactris gasipaes and Parajubaea cocoides, are domesticated. Managed species are remarkably fewer than species used in the region, which suggests that harvesters often disregard the fate of the species they use. The best way of managing palms is to employ harvest methods that do not decimate the populations. Although a variety of harvesting techniques have been documented, overharvest is common, and mismanagement prevails – unnecessary felling of palms in order to harvest leaves or fruits is a widespread practice. Research should focus on assessing production in response to management practices, but eradicating the habit of destructive harvest is an obvious priority. Research on palm management must be combined with actions addressed to all stakeholders of the palm/humans system.

We review resilience to natural and anthropogenic disturbance of palm populations and communities in tropical America. Response of palms to disturbance depends on their morphological traits, their reproductive strategies and the impacts of these traits and strategies on phenology and gene flow. Human impact induces changes in genetic structure, increasing endogamy and genetic drift in fragmented populations. Forest fragmentation and harvest of palm organs are well documented whereas effects of intermediate disturbance like selective logging, hunting or fire remain poorly known. We recommend emphasis on long-term experiments and on the use of mechanistic approaches in future research to facilitate integration of available data into a theoretical ecological framework.

Aphandra natalia(Balslev & Henderson) Barfod is a multipurpose palm that is exploited both commercially and for subsistence purposes. Its fibers are important in Peruvian and Ecuadorean broom industries and support many people economically. In Brazil, it is found in the western part of Acre, where it is the main source for a local broom market. Data from fieldwork in Peru (2007) suggests that the variation in gross profit per kilogram of fiber is considerable among the different segments in the broom industry. Harvesters and distributors earn negligible amounts of money whereas manufacturers reap of the major part of the earnings. Fiber extraction appears to be sustainable in Ecuador and in some parts of Peru, whereas in other parts of Peru unsustainable harvest occurs, involving felling of entire palm trees for the harvest of fibers. The same destructive extraction method is used in Brazil, where the palm is becoming rare in its natural distribution area., La palmera de piasaba (piassava, piassaba) —Aphandra natalia(Balslev& Henderson) Barfod es una palma que se utiliza para muchos propósitos, tanto comerciales como para la subsistencia de pueblos rurales. Sus fibras son de importancia económica en industrias de escobas en Perú y Ecuador, las cuales sostienen económicamente a muchas personas. En Brasil, esta palma se encuentra en la parte oeste del estado de Acre, donde sus fibras constituyen el recurso principal para el mercado local de escobas. Información de campo originada en Perú en el año 2007, muestra que existe una importante variación en las ganancias económicas por kilo de fibra entre los diferentes sectores de la industria de escobas. Los que cosechan y distribuyen los productos obtienen ganancias muy reducidas, mientras que los productores de escobas son los que más ganan. La extracción de fibras parece ser sostenible en Ecuador y en algunas partes de Perú, mientras que en otras partes de Perú se tumban palmeras enteras para sacar la fibra, lo cual representa un método no sostenible. La misma forma destructiva de cosecha de las fibras existe en Brasil, lo cual ha traído como consecuencia que las poblaciones de la palma se encuentran muy disminuidas en su hábitat natural.

Five new species of Geonoma from Ecuador, G. awaensis, G. ecuadoriensis, G. hollinensis, G. lanata, and G. skovii, are described and illustrated and are compared to similar species. Their distributions are mapped.

Palms (Arecaceae) are conspicuous in traditional medicine in Africa, contributing to health care of rural and urban dwellers. Palm species richness in Africa is much lower than in either tropical America or tropical Asia, whereas palm species richness in Madagascar is among the highest in the world when its area is taken into consideration. The African continent is 50 times larger than Madagascar, but has only 65 species of palms, whereas Madagascar in a much smaller area has three times as many species of palms. The objective of this survey was to gather all published ethnobotanical data on medicinal uses of palms in Madagascar and to compare this with the extent of palm use in continental Africa. Information on medicinal uses of palms in Madagascar was found in only 13 published references. We found 55 medicinal use records for at least 17 palm species, of which 14 were endemic to Madagascar and three were introduced. The most used palm was Cocos nucifera, followed by Raphia farinifera. For most of the species, however, we found only a single medicinal use. There are many parts of Madagascar yet to be explored for palms. Further studies and collecting trips may generate a more complete picture and suggest answers to why (or if) there are so few medicinal uses of palms in Madagascar compared to other parts of the world.

Palms are keystone species in tropical ecosystems and provide essential ecosystem services to rural people worldwide. However, many palm species are threatened by habitat loss and over-exploitation. Furthermore, palms are sensitive to climate and thus vulnerable to future climate changes. Here, we provide a first quantitative assessment of the future risks to the African palm flora, finding that African palm species on average may experience a decline in climatic suitability in >70% of their current ranges by 2080. This suitability loss may, however, be almost halved if migration to nearby climatically suitable sites succeeds. Worryingly, 42% of the areas with 80–100% of species losing climate suitability are also characterized by high human population density (HPD). By 2080, >90% of all African palm species’ ranges will likely occur at HPDs leading to increased risks of habitat loss and overexploitation. Additionally, up to 87% of all species are predicted to lose climatic suitability within current protected areas (PAs) by 2080. In summary, a major plant component of tropical ecosystems and provider of ecosystem services to rural populations will face strongly increased pressures from climate change and human populations in the near future.

Most palms used in agroforestry systems are exploited from wild stands or are only occasionally cultivated, while only a few palms have been domesticated. In this study we investigated how socio-economic factors and people's perceptions of changes in palm use and availability, influenced palm cultivation among indigenous Shuar and mestizo settlers in south-eastern Ecuador. We also looked at how different uses of palms influenced which species they cultivated. Our results showed that perceptions of declining palm availability in combination with heavy reliance on palm products was positively related to palm cultivation. Hence, cultivation was more common in more remote villages where alternative products were hard to get. In addition, palm cultivation was more common among wealthier people and among indigenous people than among recent settlers. This points to a limiting role of assets such as land and to the importance of history and culture with regard to cultivation. It was not possible to identify any single palm use as the primary reason for cultivating a species, but the more uses a species had, the more likely it was to be cultivated. These findings have important implications for development projects that promote cultivation of palms and other long-lived tree crops. They illustrate how market access and lack of necessary assets may undermine cultivation of native species even though these are regarded as important resources.

Aim To determine the main factors that control the distribution of palm species richness across the Americas, to understand the relative importance of climatic and other environmental factors vs. spatial variables (as substitutes for non-environmental factors such as history), and to evaluate how robust the patterns found are to changes in spatial scale. Location Tropical and subtropical America (34°N−34°S; 33°W−120°W). Methods We provide a GIS-based analysis of spatial variation in species richness at 10 grain sizes (1°−10° square grid cells). We use multiple regressions and variation partitioning to test patterns of species richness in relation to five environmental descriptors [mean annual temperature (°C), mean annual precipitation (mm year−1), number of wet days year−1, topographical range (maximum–minimum elevation), number of vegetation types] and nine spatial variables (the terms of a cubic trend-surface polynomial). Results We observe peaks in palm species richness in southern Mesoamerica, the Choco area, western and eastern Amazon basin, and east Andean slopes, and a strong latitudinal richness gradient even within the tropical zone. Pure environmental and pure spatial variation components are of equal magnitude through all spatial scales analysed. Water-related variables such as annual rainfall and number of wet days are the main richness predictors. Spatial variables, notably latitude squared are also important, whereas temperature- and habitat-related variables are relatively unimportant. Main conclusions Our analysis suggests that in the Americas, palm species richness at spatial scales from 1° to 10° is most strongly controlled by water availability, although unknown broad-scale factors, perhaps soil, historical processes or geometric constraints, are also important.

Tropical ecosystems harbor thousands of useful plant species that are harvested and used on a daily basis by rural communities and which play a major role in securing the livelihoods of numerous people (Balslev, 2011). Palms stand out as a plant group of particular importance and usefulness in north-western South America (Macia et al., 2011); production and commercialization of palm-derived non-timber forest products (NTFPs) often represents the most important or only source of cash income for local communities and individual households (Brokamp et al., 2011), apart from the direct use and consumption of palm resources for subsistence.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Without an understanding of the geography of traditional knowledge, implementing the Nagoya Protocol and national or regional strategies for benefit-sharing with local and indigenous communities will be difficult. We evaluate how much traditional knowledge about medicinal palm (Arecaceae) uses is unique and how much is shared across (i) four countries (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia), (ii) two cultural groups (Amerindian and non-Amerindian), (iii) 52 Amerindian tribes, (iv) six non-Amerindian groups, (v) 41 communities, and (vi) individuals in the 41 communities. Materials and methods We first sampled traditional knowledge about palms from 255 references and then carried out 2201 field interviews using a standard protocol. Using the combined data set, we quantified the number of “singletons” that were unique to one of the analyzed scales. For the 41 communities, we evaluated how many uses were cited by