Ravenea lakatra
Photo: (c) Bill Baker, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Bill Baker
Overview
A detailed profile for this species is sourced from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as assessments become available.
Ravenea lakatra faces severe pressure from agricultural expansion and slash-and-burn farming practices that have fragmented its remaining forest habitat in Madagascar. The species is further threatened by selective logging for construction materials and the collection of its seeds and young plants for the horticultural trade. Climate change poses an additional long-term threat through altered precipitation patterns that could affect the moist forest conditions this palm requires.
Habitat
Ravenea lakatra is endemic to the humid lowland and mid-elevation rainforests of eastern Madagascar, typically growing in moist, well-drained soils along forest edges and in secondary forest areas. The species requires consistent moisture and partial shade provided by the forest canopy.
