Subtribe Euterpeinae | Tribe Areceae Genus Oenocarpus Rank Species | |
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Similar Oenocarpus, Mauritia, Oenocarpus bacaba, Euterpe precatoria, Astrocaryum | ||
The patawa, sehe, hungurahua (Ecuador) or mingucha (Oenocarpus bataua or Jessenia bataua) is a palm tree native to the Amazon rainforest, that produces edible fruits rich in high quality oil.
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Distribution and habitat
It is native to the tropical rainforest and is abundant in the wet zones at elevations less than 1,000 m (3,300 ft), from Panamá, Trinidad, and northern South America (Colombia, Venezuela, Guianas, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru). Two varieties are recognized:
- Oenocarpus bataua var. bataua - Panama and South America
- Oenocarpus bataua var. oligocarpus (Griseb. & H.Wendl.) A.J.Hend. - Trinidad, Venezuela, Guianas
It is usually found in sandy soils with a high organic matter content that are subsequent to flooding, possibly because there are few other species which compete with it. It can grow extremely well on unflooded soils as witnessed by high-density stands in the pastures of the Colombian Chocó, though it is rarely found on terra firma in the wild since competition from other species is such that it rarely gets the high light levels it needs to set fruit.
Description
Its stem is solitary, erect, 10–25 m (33–82 ft) in height and 2–3 dm (8–12 in) diameter, smooth, and ring-shaped. It has 10–16 leaf terminals, petiole 10–50 cm (3.9–19.7 in), rachis 3–7 m (9.8–23.0 ft) long; with leaflets up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long and 15 cm breadth, approximately 100 to each side, placed in the same plane.
The blossom is 1–2 m (3 ft 3 in–6 ft 7 in) long, with about 300 rachilas up to 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) length. The flowers are yellow with sepals 2 mm (0.079 in) and petals 7 mm (0.28 in) long.
Uses
Patawa fruits are a resource for cosmetics, food and pharmaceuticals purposes.
Traditionally indigenous peoples have collected the fruit and matured it in tepid water in order to prepare drinks and also to extract its oil. Its drupes are 8–10% oil. The fresh meolo is edible too. Additionally, Rhynchophorus larva are harvested from the palm.
Oil
Traditionally, patauá oil is used by Amazonian communities in fried foods.
It is also used in cosmetic production because it can be used as a tonic to soften the hair. A famous researcher who lived in a village Kayapó said that the indigenous peoples were their most beautiful, nourished and healthy during the fruiting season.
The oil is used in traditional medicine to treat cough and bronchitis and to fortify the hair.
The rachis have been used to manufacture arrows and the leaves to make baskets and construct provisional housings.
In the future, this palm could be industrialized for oil production, because of its quality, its adaptation in poor soils, and its abundant production of fruits.