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Suicidal Palm Tree

By LIFS February 4, 2008 at 10:10 AM

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A self-destructing palm tree that flowers once every 100 years and then dies has been discovered on the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar.

"It's spectacular. It does not flower for maybe 100 years and when it's like this it can be mistaken for other types of palm," said Mijoro Rakotoarinivo, who works for the London botanical gardens in Madagascar. "But then a large shoot, a bit like an asparagus, grows out of the top of the tree and starts to spread. You get something that looks a bit like a Christmas tree growing out of the top of the palm."
The branches of this shoot then become covered in hundreds of tiny white flowers that ooze with nectar, attracting insects and birds.
But the effort of flowering and fruiting depletes the tree so much that within a few months it collapses and dies, said botanist Dr. John Dransfield.

The palm tree, Tahina spectabilis, which grows to 66 feet in height and has about 16-foot leaves, is only found in an extremely remote region in northwest Madagascar. Only 100 trees are believed to exist. Local villagers have known about the tree for years although none had seen it in flower until last year.

Dransfield says the plant has been quietly living and dramatically dying in Madagascar since the island split with mainland India 80 million years ago.

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