''Encephalartos hildebrandtii'' is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
cycad
Cycads are seed plants that typically have a stout and woody (ligneous) trunk (botany), trunk with a crown (botany), crown of large, hard, stiff, evergreen and (usually) pinnate leaves. The species are dioecious, that is, individual plants o ...
in the
Zamiaceae
The Zamiaceae are a family of cycads that are superficially palm or fern-like. They are divided into two subfamilies with eight genera and about 150 species in the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Australia and North and South America. ...
family.
It is native to
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
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, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
and
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
at elevations of 0 to 600 meters.
Description
These plants have an erect stem, without branches, about 6 meters high and 30 cm in diameter, covered with linear cataphyll, covered with a thick yellowish hairs.
The leaves, arranged in a crown at the apex of the stem, supported by a tomentose petiole 1–7 cm long, are 200–300 cm long and are composed of numerous lanceolate leaflets, 20–26 cm long, 28–36 mm wide, arranged on the spine at 45-80°; the basal leaflets are reduced to thorns.
It is a dioecious species, with male specimens having 1-7 cylindrical-fusiform cones, sessile, green or yellow in color, 20–50 cm long and 5–9 cm in diameter, with large, rhombic-shaped microsporophylls, and specimens feminine that hold from 1 to 4 cylindrical cones, of yellow color, 28–60 cm long and 15–25 cm broad, with rhomboid macrosporophylls.
The seeds have an oblong shape, are 28–60 mm long, 15–25 cm in diameter and are covered by a yellow-to-red color
sarcotesta
The sarcotesta is a fleshy seedcoat, a type of testa. Examples of seeds with a sarcotesta are pomegranate and some cycad seeds. The sarcotesta of pomegranate seeds consists of epidermal cells derived from the integument, and there are no aril
...
.
Gallery
File:Encephalartos hildebrandtii, RBGE 2009.jpg, Cone
File:Encephalartos hildebrandtii.JPG, Trunk
File:Encephalartos hildebrandtii A. Braun et Bouché - list.JPG, Leaves
References
External links
*
*
hildebrandtii
Plants described in 1874
Taxa named by Alexander Braun
{{cycad-stub