Caribbean royal palm
Roystonea oleracea
Roystonea oleracea, sometimes known as the Caribbean royal palm, palmiste, imperial palm or cabbage palm, is a species of palm which is native to the Lesser Antilles, Colombia, Venezuela, and Trinidad and Tobago. It is also reportedly naturalized in Guyana and on the islands of Mauritius and Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roystonea_oleracea
Taxonomy & Classification
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Liliopsida
Order
Arecales
Family
Arecaceae
Genus
Roystonea
Caribbean royal palm belongs to the family Arecaceae, order Arecales, within the Liliopsida class.
Species Profile
Roystonea oleracea, sometimes known as the Caribbean royal palm, palmiste, imperial palm or cabbage palm, is a species of palm which is native to the Lesser Antilles, Colombia, Venezuela, and Trinidad and Tobago. It is also reportedly naturalized in Guyana and on the islands of Mauritius and Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
The Caribbean royal palm faces severe population decline primarily due to habitat destruction from urban development, agriculture, and coastal development throughout its native range in the Caribbean. Additional pressures include over-harvesting for ornamental use and climate change impacts such as increased hurricane intensity and sea level rise affecting coastal populations.
Key Facts
Habitat & Distribution
Roystonea oleracea is native to Guadeloupe, Dominica and Martinique in the Lesser Antilles, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, northern Venezuela and northeastern Colombia. It is naturalised in Antigua, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. It often grows in areas subject which are wet for at least part of the year—coastal areas near the sea, gallery forests in seasonally flooded savannas.
Threats
IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
The Caribbean royal palm faces severe population decline primarily due to habitat destruction from urban development, agriculture, and coastal development throughout its native range in the Caribbean. Additional pressures include over-harvesting for ornamental use and climate change impacts such as increased hurricane intensity and sea level rise affecting coastal populations.
Agricultural conversion
Coastal development
Habitat loss from urban development
Climate change and sea level rise
Over-harvesting for ornamental trade
Community Sightings
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Sources & Attribution
How to Cite
IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS
GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org
This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Caribbean royal palm (Roystonea oleracea). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/caribbean-royal-palm