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Phytelephas seemannii
Also called Ivory Palm, Tagua Palm, Large Fruited Ivory Palm, Large Fruited Tagua Palm
Phytelephas seemannii, commonly called Panama ivory palm, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is one of the plants used for vegetable ivory.
Phytelephas seemannii is native to Colombia and Panama, with much of it growing in shaded areas by rivers in lowland rainforest in Colombia's Pacific/Chocó natural region. It is usually found at elevations from 0–1,000 metres (0–3,281 ft) in semi-deciduous forests.
The seeds are traded at a regional international level as vegetable ivory, which is also called tagua. This commercial use is a threat to the species, but progress is being made on using more sustainable practices and conservation. As the tree typically grows only 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) tall, it was not chopped down to harvest the seeds as was done with Phytelephas aequatorialis at the peak of tagua harvesting.
Ivory Palm · Ivory nut palm · Phytelephas olsonii · Ivory Nut Palm · Phytelephas tenuicaulis · Phytelephas tumacana · Nut palm
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Phytelephas seemannii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
