Palms of the Ryûkyûs

[Pal Meir]

Only four genera palmarum are native to the Ryûkyû Islands: Satakentia liukiuensis, Arenga engleri, Livistona chinensis, and Nypa fruticans. I visited the islands of Iriomote and Ishigaki in August 1987 and took some photos of those palms in their habitats. – At first I had to go by boat to Iriomote where I was welcomed by the same kind guide  I already met at Singapore BG in 1978 and at Kew in 1986:

[doranakandawatta]

where is the yellow Audi? 

[Pal Meir]

There are/were two stands of Satakentia on Iriomote: one at Hoshidate (Fudati) and one in midst of the jungle of Ubuñdul north of the river Nakama-gawa in the south of the island.

 

[Pal Meir]

The palms at Hoshidate are (> now: were) the tallest of all Satakentia palms in habitat:

[Pal Meir]

But there were growing also smaller ones and even little babies:

[Pal Meir]

The palm stand on the hillsides of Ubuñdoru (Ubuñdul) were unreachable for me because I didn’t have so much time:

If I wanted to go there I had to pass this track:

[Pal Meir]

The second species I present here is Arenga engleri. Only the Arenga palms on Iriomote are called komi kurotsugu, i.e. Arenga with »small fruits«. (In the older Japanese literature they were identified as Arenga tremula.) They are growing on riversides or under the canopy of other trees:

The can be adult, small, or even babies:

[Pal Meir]

On the tiny island of Uchibanari NW of Iriomote there is a stand of Nypa fruticans:

It was blooming:

And … oops … what’s that? There was again the kind guide , too:

[Pal Meir]

The third stand of Satakentia palms is on the island of Ishigaki:

Near the coast there is the location Yonehara:

There you can find the commemorative plaque for the American botanist Harold Emery Moore (1917-1980) at the entrance of the yashiriñ (if you can’t read the text ask palmtalker @JT in Japan):

[Pal Meir]

And now we enter the yashiriñ (i.e. 椰子林):

Not only roots, but also tiny babies:

And … hello! … again the kind guide !

[Pal Meir]

Oh, those trees had not only roots but also trunks, fronds, and flowers:

[Pal Meir]

The name of the Arenga engleri on Ishigaki didn’t have the attribute komi »small fruit«, they were called only kurotsugu like the Arenga e.g. on Okinawa, too:

The following Arenga stands in Nakagusuku on Okinawa island:

It has also a baby:

[doranakandawatta]

Many thanks for sharing all these high scientific interest pictures.
The amateur I am love that. 

[Pal Meir]

And at last the only palm which is also native to the mainland of Japan: Livistona chinensis.

The can be very small:

… medium:

… or large:

And in mainland Japan they grow naturally only at two locations, one on Kyûshû and the other on Shikoku; this pic is from the SE of Kyûshû:

THE END

[realarch]

Thanks for the post......very interesting. Such lovely palms and differences in growth habit due to location even more so. 

Tim

[palmfriend]

Absolutely beautiful - amazing photos!

It may sound unbelievable but I was really considering to take two days off to fly down there (to Ishigaki and then

with a boat to Iriomote) to educate myself and to take pictures for the palmtalkers... Obviously not necessary

anymore - now I can use this fantastic thread and can safe a lot of money (And btw. I really doubt that I could have

done it as good as Pal Meir did it.)

Thank you for this tour!!

PS: The plate at the entrance explains how the Satakentia Liukiuensis was categorized for the first time by H.E.Moore

as an original/independent species in 1969 and describes very shortly its characteristics. It further lists other plants in

this area and finishes with reminding the visitors not to change anything or "take away" which is forbidden by low.

(I am not 100% sure about this "take away"-phrase, I have to give it a closer look, JT, correct me if I am wrong!)

best regards

 

 

[Pal Meir]

The text of the plaque is as follows:
天然記念物 米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落
昭和47年5月15日指定
ヤエヤマヤシは, 石垣島, 西表島のみに自生する固有のヤシでかつては小笠原諸島のノヤシと同種と考えられていましたが, 1969年にH.E.Moore氏により別種として発表されました。
米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落は、我国最大の自生地であり, ほぼ完全な自生状態にあり, 多数のヤエヤマヤシが自生しています。
本地域のヤエヤマヤシは,樹高15〜20m, 胸高直径20〜30cmにも達する見事なヤシです。
自生地には本種の他に, ハマイヌビワ, ホソバムクイヌビワ, ショウベンノキ, リュウキュウガキ, アカテツ, フクギ, ハブカズラ, クロツグ, クワズイモ, ミカワリシダなどの植物がみられます。
なお, この地域において許可を得ることなく現状を変更し, または, 保存に影響を及ぼす行為をすることは法律で禁じられています。
文部省
沖縄県

[doranakandawatta]

33 minutes ago, Pal Meir said:

The text of the plaque is as follows:
天然記念物 米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落
昭和47年5月15日指定
ヤエヤマヤシは, 石垣島, 西表島のみに自生する固有のヤシでかつては小笠原諸島のノヤシと同種と考えられていましたが, 1969年にH.E.Moore氏により別種として発表されました。
米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落は、我国最大の自生地であり, ほぼ完全な自生状態にあり, 多数のヤエヤマヤシが自生しています。
本地域のヤエヤマヤシは,樹高15〜20m, 胸高直径20〜30cmにも達する見事なヤシです。
自生地には本種の他に, ハマイヌビワ, ホソバムクイヌビワ, ショウベンノキ, リュウキュウガキ, アカテツ, フクギ, ハブカズラ, クロツグ, クワズイモ, ミカワリシダなどの植物がみられます。
なお, この地域において許可を得ることなく現状を変更し, または, 保存に影響を及ぼす行為をすることは法律で禁じられています。
文部省
沖縄県

Ah, of course … 

[Monòver]

2 hours ago, Pal Meir said:

The text of the plaque is as follows:
天然記念物 米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落
昭和47年5月15日指定
ヤエヤマヤシは, 石垣島, 西表島のみに自生する固有のヤシでかつては小笠原諸島のノヤシと同種と考えられていましたが, 1969年にH.E.Moore氏により別種として発表されました。
米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落は、我国最大の自生地であり, ほぼ完全な自生状態にあり, 多数のヤエヤマヤシが自生しています。
本地域のヤエヤマヤシは,樹高15〜20m, 胸高直径20〜30cmにも達する見事なヤシです。
自生地には本種の他に, ハマイヌビワ, ホソバムクイヌビワ, ショウベンノキ, リュウキュウガキ, アカテツ, フクギ, ハブカズラ, クロツグ, クワズイモ, ミカワリシダなどの植物がみられます。
なお, この地域において許可を得ることなく現状を変更し, または, 保存に影響を及ぼす行為をすることは法律で禁じられています。
文部省
沖縄県

[Pal Meir]

9 minutes ago, Monòver said:

@palmfriend was so kind to explain already the main content. Besides it may be of interest that the trees are 15 to 20 m tall and the trunks have a diameter of 20 to 30 cm. (The palms at Hoshidate were much taller.)

[Pal Meir]

These are the climate data for Iriomote (source: Wikipedia):

[Pal Meir]

3 hours ago, doranakandawatta said:

where is the yellow Audi? 

I swapped my Audi for a bicycle:

[palmfriend]

3 hours ago, Pal Meir said:

The text of the plaque is as follows:
天然記念物 米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落
昭和47年5月15日指定
ヤエヤマヤシは, 石垣島, 西表島のみに自生する固有のヤシでかつては小笠原諸島のノヤシと同種と考えられていましたが, 1969年にH.E.Moore氏により別種として発表されました。
米原のヤエヤマヤシ群落は、我国最大の自生地であり, ほぼ完全な自生状態にあり, 多数のヤエヤマヤシが自生しています。
本地域のヤエヤマヤシは,樹高15〜20m, 胸高直径20〜30cmにも達する見事なヤシです。
自生地には本種の他に, ハマイヌビワ, ホソバムクイヌビワ, ショウベンノキ, リュウキュウガキ, アカテツ, フクギ, ハブカズラ, クロツグ, クワズイモ, ミカワリシダなどの植物がみられます。
なお, この地域において許可を得ることなく現状を変更し, または, 保存に影響を及ぼす行為をすることは法律で禁じられています。
文部省
沖縄県

Oh, thank you very much - that`s much better to read!

I have to correct myself. It says at the end that you should not change anything or do something that may have an impact/effect on the original conditions.

And one more little detail, I have just recognized: The Yeayama-yashi (Satakentia Liukiuensis) was first seen as the same species as the No-yashi

(Clinostigma Savoryana) of the Ogasawara-islands until H.E.Moore announced it as a new/independent species.

Ok, before I gets too far, I`ll stop right here Class is over!

(I have to confess that I have never seen such tall Satakentias around here like those in Hoshidate. Impressive!)

Pal Meir, thank you again for this great thread.

best regards

 

[Pal Meir]

12 minutes ago, palmfriend said:

Oh, thank you very much - that`s much better to read!

I have to correct myself. It says at the end that you should not change anything or do something that may have an impact/effect on the original conditions.

And one more little detail, I have just recognized: The Yeayama-yashi (Satakentia Liukiuensis) was first seen as the same species as the No-yashi

(Clinostigma Savoryana) of the Ogasawara-islands until H.E.Moore announced it as a new/independent species.

Ok, before I gets too far, I`ll stop right here Class is over!

(I have to confess that I have never seen such tall Satakentias around here like those in Hoshidate. Impressive!)

Pal Meir, thank you again for this great thread.

best regards

Thanks for your translation! (So the Palmtalkers don’t get »Lost in Translation«.)  – The tallest Satakentia I’ve ever seen was this one, much taller than all in Yonehara:

[JT in Japan]

That's a great thread, Pal. Fantastic images, and solid detail as always. While there isn't a broad spectrum of palms in Japan, there's a great depth of detail on the ones we have. You certainly bring that forward. For people like Lars (Palmfriend) and myself, who live here and don't encounter too many people who know anything about palms (or care, for that matter), Palmtalk and its wealth of members with stories -- and Pal! -- really fill in the information gaps and make it feel like we're part of a palm community. 

Cheers, JT

[Pal Meir]

4 hours ago, doranakandawatta said:

Many thanks for sharing all these high scientific interest pictures.
The amateur I am love that. 

I am also only an amateur, I’ve never studied botany, I only like palms, that’s all.

[Pal Meir]

31 minutes ago, JT in Japan said:

That's a great thread, Pal. Fantastic images, and solid detail as always. While there isn't a broad spectrum of palms in Japan, there's a great depth of detail on the ones we have. You certainly bring that forward. For people like Lars (Palmfriend) and myself, who live here and don't encounter too many people who know anything about palms (or care, for that matter), Palmtalk and its wealth of members with stories -- and Pal! -- really fill in the information gaps and make it feel like we're part of a palm community. 

Cheers, JT

You can read in some Japanese articles on palms that also Trachycarpus fortunei and Rhapis excelsa are growing naturally in Japan. That’s not correct. Both species were introduced from China by men some centuries ago. Now they are only naturalized, as in many other countries of the world.

[Pal Meir]

An old photo of the Satakentia group in Hoshidate (Fudati) on Iriomote Island, taken by the late Satake Toshihiko 佐竹利彦氏 (1910-1998):

[palmfriend]

On 2016/5/18 7:04:10, JT in Japan said:

That's a great thread, Pal. Fantastic images, and solid detail as always. While there isn't a broad spectrum of palms in Japan, there's a great depth of detail on the ones we have. You certainly bring that forward. For people like Lars (Palmfriend) and myself, who live here and don't encounter too many people who know anything about palms (or care, for that matter), Palmtalk and its wealth of members with stories -- and Pal! -- really fill in the information gaps and make it feel like we're part of a palm community. 

Cheers, JT

JT,

I couldn`t have described it better, thank you!

This forum is a pure treasure!

2 hours ago, Pal Meir said:

An old photo of the Satakentia group in Hoshidate (Fudati) on Iriomote Island, taken by the late Satake Toshihiko 佐竹利彦氏 (1910-1998):

 

Pal,

thank you for posting this interesting page! It seems that Nishiomote is an older name/reading for Iriomote island. 

Sakishima is nowadays used as a general term for all islands in Okinawa`s southern part, starting with Miyako-island and

then "going down" to the Yaeyama islands (Ishigaki isl., Iriomote isl. plus many other smaller ones) , where the Yaeyama palm

(Satakentia liukiuensis) is originally from.

If my comment is too fussy - my apologies.

best regards

 

 

[Pal Meir]

7 hours ago, palmfriend said:

JT,

I couldn`t have described it better, thank you!

This forum is a pure treasure!

Pal,

thank you for posting this interesting page! It seems that Nishiomote is an older name/reading for Iriomote island. 

Sakishima is nowadays used as a general term for all islands in Okinawa`s southern part, starting with Miyako-island and

then "going down" to the Yaeyama islands (Ishigaki isl., Iriomote isl. plus many other smaller ones) , where the Yaeyama palm

(Satakentia liukiuensis) is originally from.

If my comment is too fussy - my apologies.

best regards

Nishi is the inadequate (i.e. Japanese, and not older) reading for Ryûkyûan iri »west«.

[palmfriend]

4 hours ago, Pal Meir said:

Nishi is the inadequate (i.e. Japanese, and not older) reading for Ryûkyûan iri »west«.

Pal,

I should have considered it but the year of the book`s publication pushed me into the wrong direction...

Thank you for your the hint!

best regards

 

[Pal Meir]

Oops, I’ve found two old postcards of Yaeyama yashi with (almost) the same motive …:

[JT in Japan]

4 hours ago, Pal Meir said:

Oops, I’ve found two old postcards of Yaeyama yashi with (almost) the same motive …:

The background of both pictures looks familiar, but the water buffalo seems to have evolved, somewhat...

[Pal Meir]

6 hours ago, JT in Japan said:

The background of both pictures looks familiar, but the water buffalo seems to have evolved, somewhat...

Could it be a metamorphosis of the deity ZEUS ???

[Kim]

This is a fascinating thread -- Pal Meir, please check your message box.

[Pal Meir]

You won’t believe it, but there were also other plants than palms on Iriomote Island:

The tree is over 400 years old, so even older than me …

[Pal Meir]

And I regret not having seen the famous (nocturnal) Iriomote wildcat イリオモテヤマネコ, but instead only animals like these, giant spiders …

… and heavenly dragons:

[Pal Meir]

I took two companions with me to Germany, one Satakentia baby  from Hoshidate (there were no viable seeds) and Arenga seeds from Nakagusuku/Okinawa. Whereas the Satakentia didn’t like the dry atmosphere at German universities at all  and died as juvenile palm after a couple of years,  the Arenga was thriving happily,  and I think it is growing at present planted in ground in a zoological garden in N-Germany: