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Bizarre Self-Destructing Palm Tree Found

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the this-message-will-self-destruct-in-100-years dept.

Smivs writes "A giant self-destructing palm tree has been discovered in Madagascar. The palm is 20m (60ft) high with leaves 5m (16ft) long, the tallest tree of its type in the country, but for most of its life — around 100 years — it appears fairly unremarkable apart from its size. However, when it flowers, it puts so much energy into an impressive flower-spike, that it eventually collapses and dies. Dr John Dransfield, who announced the tree in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, is baffled as to how it came to be in the country. It bears a resemblance to a species of palm found in regions of Asia; 6,000km away. It is thought that the palm has gone through a remarkable evolution since Madagascar split with India some 80m years ago."

7 of 190 comments (clear)

  1. Giant Palm of Death by Codifex+Maximus · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I have some theories:
    Dies once it has produced it's fruit. Possibly to allow it's seedlings some light. Also, more fruit means more likelihood of a successful bunch of seedlings.
    How did it get to Madagascar? Well, it's flowers produce lots of nectar but not sure if the fruit itself is edible - probably the Polynesians carried it with them. After all, they are the ones who first colonized Madagascar not the Africans.

    --
    Codifex Maximus ~ In search of... a shorter sig.
    1. Re:Giant Palm of Death by Jonny_eh · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Humans could not have brought it over since the article states that it has undergone 80 million years of evolution since splitting from its asian ancestors. Humans have only been around for approximately 100k years.

  2. madagascar split from indonesia a long time ago by circletimessquare · · Score: 4, Interesting

    but if the palm tree is not too evolutionarily distinct, the palm may have been brought there by humans more recently from indonesia, not survived for 40M years in isolation

    and i say this because madagascar was populated by modern humans from indonesia first, and africans second

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Madagascar#Pre-history

    linguistically and culturally, madagascar is closer to indonesia than it is to mainland africa, which is rather bizarre when you look at a map

    indonesians could have bought the palm fruit with them, and the palm might still be found in indonesia, or went extinct there

    it's a plausible alternative theory to the 40M years in isolation hypothesis

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
  3. Which comes first? by kermit1221 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Does the tree flower after a hundred years and expend so much energy that it kills itself? Or does the tree put on an impressive flowering process because after a hundred years it's dying and needs to spread some seeds before it's too late?

  4. Palm trees also propagate with lightening by gelfling · · Score: 4, Interesting

    there is a variant of the giant palm that propagates from lightening strikes. A bolt hits the tree, explodes its seed pods and sends them all over the place.

  5. Re: Bizarre Self-Destructing Palm Tree Found by The+Great+Pretender · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Yeah, I would call it the "Jim Morrison Tree"

    --
    A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
  6. Agave by partridge · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Reminds me of an Agave plant we had out behind our house.

    For my entire childhood it was just this big spiky Aloe like bush behind the house. About 5 feet tall. Then one time when I was in my late 20's it grew this absolutely gigantic spike about the height of a telephone pole, flowered, and then produced hundreds of little budding plantlets that fell off and took root. The original plant then promptly died.