Synchronous patterns in Moriche palms (Mauritia flexuosa-Calamoideae) at the landscape-level scale are well known on the South American mainland, however, little is known about this phenomena for Moriche palms on the island of Trinidad; the northern geographical extent of distribution for the species.
Over the last ten (10) years of studying Moriche palms in Trinidad, I noticed only once (possibly during the years 2014-2015) most adult palms on the island flowering at the same time. Generally, on the mainland, the species flower throughout the year; most predominately during the dry season. Here, I noticed a similar pattern. Over this mass flowering period, I also noticed individual palm trees holding on to fruits for well over a year; a phenomenon known as bradychory or delayed fruit-fall.
Synchronous flowering and fruiting can occur at the local, national, and regional scale; judging from recent entries of Moriche palms on iNaturalist, I speculate that the Moriche palm mass flowering cycle is national.
I was excited to observe a palm I planted in October 2012 in Talparo (central Trinidad) flowering for the first time. It turned out to be a female. An interesting research question that warrants further investigation would be to understand ” how often do Moriche palms flower synchronously in Trinidad, and what environmental cues are responsible for these flowering events?”
