Encephalartos caffer, the Eastern Cape dwarf cycad, is a rare cycad from the genus Encephalartos. It typically has an underground stem, with a small portion on top, the stem is only very rarely branched and may be as much as 40 cm long.[2] Emerging from the top are long, pinnate, dark green leaves up to 1 metre (3.3 ft) long. These often have a distinctive ruffled, feathery appearance, caused by the numerous, clustered leaflets being irregularly twisted from the central stalk and pointing out in different directions.[2][3] New leaves are brown and woolly at first but most of the hair is lost as they mature, although they never become completely smooth or glossy. Both male and female plants bear single reproductive cones made up of a series of spiraled scales, which become greenish-yellow when mature. In the female, two largish, glossy, scarlet-coloured seeds are formed on top of each cone scale.[2]
Approximately 10,000 mature individuals are confined to the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa .[4]
Found in the coastal belt and up to 100 km inland, usually growing in grassveld but also occurring in adjacent bush, possibly due to shifting boundaries caused by veld fires.[2][5]
Cycads are dioecious, meaning that there are separate male and female plants, and the female produces seeds while the male produces pollen. Plants of this taxon have generally been considered to be wind pollinated, but several recent studies suggest that insect pollination is more likely. The seeds produced are typically large with a hard, stony layer (sclerotesta) beneath a fleshy outer coat (sarcotesta), attracting animals such as birds, rodents and small mammals, which serve as dispersal agents. In most cases, the fleshy coat is eaten off the seed rather than the entire seed being consumed. Cycads are long-lived and slow-growing, with slow recruitment and population turnover.[6]
All cycads possess 'coralloid' (meaning coral-like) roots. These roots contain symbiotic cyanobacteria that fix gaseous nitrogen from the atmosphere and provide essential nitrogenous compounds to the plant. This can be a great advantage, as many cycads grow in nutrient-poor habitats.[6]
The Eastern Cape dwarf cycad was one of the first three Cape cycads to be declared endangered by the Cape Provincial Nature Conservation authorities. Collectors have seriously depleted numbers in certain areas, particularly in easily accessible terrain. Large numbers have also been destroyed by conversion of land to agriculture, such as in the Humansdorp and Albany districts.[2]
A few viable colonies are protected on state-owned land, and a large colony occurs in the Cape provincial cycad reserve near Grahamstown, where plants are regularly inspected. Here, many seedlings can be seen amongst the mature plants, and the species therefore seems to be in no immediate danger of extinction.[2]
E. caffer is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List 2007, and listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).[7]
This article incorporates text from the ARKive fact-file "Encephalartos caffer" under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License and the GFDL.
Encephalartos caffer, the Eastern Cape dwarf cycad, is a rare cycad from the genus Encephalartos. It typically has an underground stem, with a small portion on top, the stem is only very rarely branched and may be as much as 40 cm long. Emerging from the top are long, pinnate, dark green leaves up to 1 metre (3.3 ft) long. These often have a distinctive ruffled, feathery appearance, caused by the numerous, clustered leaflets being irregularly twisted from the central stalk and pointing out in different directions. New leaves are brown and woolly at first but most of the hair is lost as they mature, although they never become completely smooth or glossy. Both male and female plants bear single reproductive cones made up of a series of spiraled scales, which become greenish-yellow when mature. In the female, two largish, glossy, scarlet-coloured seeds are formed on top of each cone scale.
Encephalartos caffer (Thunb.) Lehm., 1834, nota anche come pane dei Cafri,[2] è una pianta appartenente alla famiglia delle Zamiaceae, diffusa nella provincia del Capo Orientale, in Sudafrica.
Il suo epiteto specifico fa riferimento alla località nota come Caffrara, nella provincia del Capo Orientale.
È una pianta acaule, con un fusto lungo 30–40 cm e largo 20–25 cm. Occasionalmente, una piccola porzione del fusto può fuoriuscire dal terreno. Le radici sono corte e piuttosto spesse.
Le foglie sono lunghe 50–100 cm e di colore verde scuro. Quelle più giovani sono ricoperte da una fitta peluria che viene persa quando raggiungono la maturazione. Le foglioline lanceolate, lunghe 8–10 cm sono disposte sul rachide in modo opposto con un angolo di 120-150º; i margini sono lisci e interi.
È una specie dioica, con coni maschili di forma ovoidale, di colore giallo, lunghi 20–30 cm e larghi 7–12 cm. I coni femminili hanno una forma ovoidale, sono lunghi 30 cm e hanno un diametro di 15 cm. Ciascuna pianta produce un solo cono per volta. Tanto i macrosporofilli quanto i microsporofilli sono disposti a spirale sui rispettivi coni.
I semi hanno una forma oblunga e sono ricoperti da un tegumento di colore rosso.
La specie è diffusa nella provincia del Capo Orientale, in Sudafrica, principalmente nei distretti di Humansdorp e Albany.[1]
Cresce di preferenza nelle praterie, anche tra le rocce, ad un'altitudine compresa tra 300 e 700 m s.l.m. Le precipitazioni annue in questo habitat si aggirano tra i 750 e i 1 000 mm, con estati calde e inverni temperati.
La IUCN Red List classifica E. caffer come specie prossima alla minaccia (Near Threatened). In particolare risente dei danni provocati dall'agricoltura e dalla raccolta di esemplari a scopo ornamentale.[1]
La specie è inserita nella Appendice I della Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES)[3]
Encephalartos caffer (Thunb.) Lehm., 1834, nota anche come pane dei Cafri, è una pianta appartenente alla famiglia delle Zamiaceae, diffusa nella provincia del Capo Orientale, in Sudafrica.
Il suo epiteto specifico fa riferimento alla località nota come Caffrara, nella provincia del Capo Orientale.
Стовбур 0,3-0,4 м заввишки, 20-25 см діаметром. Листки завдовжки 50-100 см, темно-зелені, напівглянсові; хребет зелений, прямий, жорсткий; черешок прямий, без колючок. Листові фрагменти ланцетні; середні — 8-10 см завдовжки, шириною 10 мм. Пилкові шишки 1, вузькояйцевиді, жовті, 20-30 см завдовжки, 7-12 см діаметром. Насіннєві шишки 1, яйцевиді, жовті, довжиною 30 см, 15 см діаметром. Насіння довгасте, саркотеста червона.
Країни поширення: ПАР (Східна Капська провінці, Квазулу-Наталь). Записаний від 300 до 700 м над рівнем моря. Цей вид, як правило, росте на луках, але також може буцти в заростях, коли луки не спалюються часто. Часто зустрічається серед скель.
Середовище проживання деякою мірою під загрозою в результаті очищення для сільськогосподарських цілей. Загрозою також є надмірне збирання для декоративних цілей. Росте в англ. Brooklands Cycad Reserve, Oribi Gorge Nature Reserve.
Encephalartos caffer là một loài thực vật hạt trần trong họ Zamiaceae. Loài này được (Thunb.) Lehm. mô tả khoa học đầu tiên năm 1834.[1]
Encephalartos caffer là một loài thực vật hạt trần trong họ Zamiaceae. Loài này được (Thunb.) Lehm. mô tả khoa học đầu tiên năm 1834.
Encephalartos caffer (Thunb.) Lehm., 1834
Охранный статус
Энцефаляртос кафрский[источник не указан 1297 дней] (лат. Encephalartos caffer) — вид саговников семейства Замиевые (Zamiaceae), эндемик ЮАР, типовой вид рода Encephalartos[1].
Похожее на пальму медленно растущее двудомное растение. Ствол короткий, длиной около 35 см, достигает 20—25 см в диаметре. Крупные листья ярко-зелёного цвета до одного метра в дину, перисто-рассечённые. Листочки ланцетной формы, до 10 см длиной и около 1 см шириной, супротивные, нижние превращаются в колючки. На каждом экземпляре растения по одной жёлтой шишке: пыльцевая шишка узко-яйцевидной формы (до 30 см длиной и около 10 см в диаметре); семенная шишка яйцевидной формы (примерно 30×15 см). Семена красного цвета, продолговатые.
Естественным образом растение распространено на территории Капской провинции, вдоль побережья Индийского океана, от города Порт-Элизабет на юге, до Дурбана на севере.
Этот вид традиционно использовался местными племенами для получения из сердцевины ствола крахмалистой пищи (саго), однако, в настоящее время в связи с сокращением в естественной среде обитания, растение практически перестало использоваться как пищевое.
Один из первых саговников, попавших в европейские теплицы, культивируется как декоративное растение.
Впервые растение было описано в 1775 году шведским ботаником Карлом Тунбергом как «новый вид пальмы» под названием Саговник кафрский (Cycas caffra).
Синонимы
Энцефаляртос кафрский[источник не указан 1297 дней] (лат. Encephalartos caffer) — вид саговников семейства Замиевые (Zamiaceae), эндемик ЮАР, типовой вид рода Encephalartos.
