Copernicia

Copernicia
	Copernica ceifera
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Arecales
Family:	Arecaceae
Subfamily:	Coryphoideae
Tribe:	Trachycarpeae
Genus:	Copernicia; Mart.
Synonyms
	ArrudariaMacedo; CoryphomiaRojas Acosta;

Coperniciais agenusofpalmsnative toSouth Americaand theGreater Antilles.Of the known species andnothospecies(hybrids), 22 of the 27 areendemictoCuba.^[1]They arefan palms(Arecaceae tribeCorypheae), with theleaveswith a bare petiole terminating in a rounded fan of numerous leaflets. The species are small to medium-sizedtreesgrowing to 5–30 m tall, typically occurring close to streams and rivers insavannahabitats.^[2]The genus is named after the astronomerNicolaus Copernicus.In some of the species, the leaves are coated with a thin layer ofwax,known ascarnauba wax.

Species and hybrids

Coperniciaspecies and hybrids are as follows.^[3]

Image	Scientific name	Distribution
	Copernicia albaMorong	Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso Sul
	Copernicia baileyanaLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia berteroanaBecc.	Hispaniola
	Copernicia brittonorumLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia cowelliiBritton & P.Wilson	Camagüey Province in Cuba
	Copernicia curbeloiLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia curtissiiBecc.	Cuba
	Copernicia ekmaniiBurret	Haiti
	Copernicia fallaensisLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia gigasEkman ex Burret	Cuba
	Copernicia glabrescensH.Wendl. ex Becc	Cuba
	Copernicia hospitaMart.	Cuba
	Copernicia humicolaLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia longiglossaLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia macroglossaSchaedtler	Cuba
	Copernicia molinetiLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia prunifera(Mill.) H.E.Moore	northeastern Brazil
	Copernicia rigidaBritton & P.Wilson	Cuba
	Copernicia roigiiLeón	Cuba
	Copernicia tectorum(Kunth) Mart.	Colombia, Venezuela
	Copernicia yareyBurret	Cuba

Scientific name	Parentage	Distribution
Copernicia × burretianaLeón	C. hospita × C. macroglossa	Cuba
Copernicia × occidentalisLeón	C. brittonanum × C. hospita	Cuba
Copernicia × textilisLeón	C. baileyana × C. hospita	Cuba
Copernicia × vespertilionumLeón	C. gigas × C. rigida	Cuba
Copernicia × shaferiDahlgren & Glassman	C. cowellii × C. hospita	Cuba
Copernicia × sueroanaLeón	C. hospita × C. rigida	Cuba

^^a ^bKew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
^Govaerts, R. & Dransfield, J. (2005). World Checklist of Palms: 1-223. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
^"Copernicia".Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew:World Checklist of Selected Plant Families.Archived fromthe originalon 2007-08-27.Retrieved2014-08-11.