Kingdom Plantae Family Arecaceae Scientific name Oncosperma tigillarium Rank Species | Order Arecales Genus Oncosperma Higher classification Oncosperma | |
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Similar Oncosperma, Palm trees, Diospyros macrophylla, Vatica bantamensis, Dysoxylum densiflorum | ||
Oncosperma tigilarium is a species of palm tree in the Arecaceae family.
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Description
Oncosperma tigilarium grows to 40 feet in height in dense thickets of up to 50 palm trees. The trunks of the palms are covered with long black spines. Oncosperma tigilarium has finely pinnate leaves, with drooping leaflets.
Common names
Its common name in Indonesion is nibung meaning thorn, for the long thorns that arise along the length of the trunk of the palm. In parts of the Philippines it is known as anibung in the Hiligaynon language.
Distribution
The species is known from inland, lower salinity waters, near mangrove swamps of Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines in Southeast Asia. It is native to these areas west of the Wallace Line growing at elevations below 150 metres. It is endangered in some areas due to deforestation, and it is invasive to a few tropical islands in the Western Hemisphere where it has been planted as an ornamental.
Habitat and ecology
In Singapore, A cluster of Nibong palms survive near the entrance of the Istana, located at the end of Orchard Road. A plaque at that site states: "As the nibong is a mangrove palm, this site must have once been a mangrove swamp."
