Flora of New Zealand Series

Type: K.

Similar in size, habit and indumentum to R. sapida. Infl. often larger, flowering branches reaching 35 cm. or more long. Sepals relatively shorter, the longest one in ♂ rarely = petals. Fr. c. 13 × 12 mm., subglobose, brick-red. Seed almost spherical, tightly invested in pale fawn endocarp which is marked by several vascular strands curving ± obliquely from hilum and only a few running longitudinally; hilum a broad band from the slightly flattened chalazal area to a pronounced papilla beside the micropyle.

DIST.: Kermadec Is. Sunday or Raoul Id, abundant.

FL. 1–?. FT. 1–12.

Beccari's long and detailed description of R. cheesemanii was based on specimens collected by Cheeseman in 1887 and on fls derived from a plant grown from Kermadec seed in Auckland. Both collections are represented in Herb. Cheeseman at AK. Beccari also briefly characterised the 3 spp. of Rhopalostylis but two of the characters he mentions, overall size of plant and shape of fruiting per., do not seem to offer significant contrasts between spp. Frs and seeds, however, differ much in size and shape. Frs of R. baueri Wendl. et Drude  in Linnaea 39, 1875, 234, t. 1, fig. 2, received from Norfolk Id, are much larger than those of R. sapida, as well as being more broadly oval in outline, and the adherent endocarp has a distinctive pattern of vascular strands.

It is only in suitably ripened frs that the fibrous part of the pericarp separates freely from the thin pale endocarp to expose the vascular strands which apparently form a characteristic pattern in each sp.