Editing Archontophoenix (section)

===Overview: ===
<i>Archontophoenix</i> H. Wendland & O. Drude is a
genus of single-stemmed, pinnate-leaved, monoecious, Arecoid
palms endemic to eastern Australia.
The genus was established in 1875 by Hermann Wendland and
Oscar Drude in the journal Linnaea. Though no type species
was designated at the time of publication, the accepted
lectotype is <i>A. alexandrae</i>
(F. Mueller) H. Wendland & Drude
(=<i>Ptychosperma alexandrae</i> F. Mueller) which was
described in the same publication.
A number of other names have been applied to the genus; for
example <i>Seaforthia, Ptychosperma</i>, <i>Loroma</i> and <i>Jessenia</i>.

The genus is rather undifferentiated and the species do not
display a great degree of variation. The main features of the
genus include: solitary habit; tall erect trunk; leaf bases
forming an elongate crownshaft; leaves paripinnate; pinnae
linear-acute with a prominent midrib raised on both surfaces;
inflorescence infrafoliar at maturity, protandrous, branched
to three or four orders; two bracts which fully enclose the
inflorescence in bud, the prophyll attached at the base of
the peduncle, fully enclosing the peduncular bract which is
attached slightly above the attachment of the prophyll;
bracts are completely deciduous immediately prior to floral
maturity; flowers unisexual and borne in triads throughout
most of the rachillae, staminate flowers only in the distal
portion; peduncle short; rachis elongate, angled proximally,
becoming terete distally; rachillae zig-zagged throughout or
distally; staminate flowers asymmetrical in bud; petals thin,
angled, valvate, opening widely at anthesis; stamens 9-34;
anthers dorsifixed near the middle; pistillode about as long
as stamens; pistillate flowers smaller than the staminate,
globose; stigma trifid; staminodes three; gynoecium
unilocular, uniovulate; fruit one-seeded, conic-ovoid to
elliptical, red at maturity; stigmatic remains apical or
nearly so; mesocarp with thin to thick fibres; endocarp thin,
brittle to crustaceous, non-operculate; hilum elongate;
endosperm ruminate; embryo basal; germination
adjacent-ligular; eophyll bifid.

Variation between the species is primarily expressed in the
following characteristics: degree of enlargement of the base
of the trunk; colour of the crownshaft - from shades of green
to red/purple; degree of lateral twist in the leaf the pinnae
in near-horizontal to vertical orientation; whether
silver/grey scales or ramenta are present or absent on the
lower surface of the pinnae; size and degree of branching of
the inflorescence; colour of the flowers white/cream to
lilac; number of stamens - 9-34; whether the filament is
desexed or not; size of the fruit - 8-26 mm long; texture of
the epicarp - smooth or pebbled; position of the stigmatic
remains apical or eccentric; thickness, type and degree of
branching of the fibres within the mesocarp; the degree of
adherence of the raphe fibres to the seed; and the degree to
which the mesocarpic fibres are embedded in the endocarp.
Distribution of the genus in along the eastern coast of
Australia, from Durras Mountain, New South Wales [35&deg
10'S] to Cape York, Queensland [10&#176; 40'S], in coastal and
near coastal lowlands and ranges, from sea-level to 1200 m
altitude. Lowland and moderate altitude populations are
continuous for many kilometres where conditions permit
(e.g. <i>A. alexandrae</i>, <i>A. cunninghamiana</i> and
<i>A. tuckeri</i>, whilst other species have small populations which
are isolated and remote from others (e.g. <i>A. myolensis</i> and
<i>A. maxima</i>).

Main habitats include rainforest, wet sclerophyll, gallery
forest, moist vineforest and swampforest; and occasionally in
seasonally dry forests such as deciduous or semi-evergreen
vineforests. Soil types are varied, derived from granite,
basalt, metamorphics, siliceous sand and schists.