Plants in Israel | Caryota mitis

Caryota mitis, Caryota griffithii, Caryota sobolifera, Burmese fishtail palm, Clustered fishtail palm, Tufted fishtail palm,

Hebrew: דקל זנב דג, Arabic: Nakhlat câryôtâ

Scientific name:   Caryota mitis Lour.
Synonym name:   Caryota griffithii Becc., Caryota sobolifera Wall. ex Mart.
Common name:   Burmese fishtail palm, Clustered fishtail palm, Tufted fishtail palm
Hebrew name:   דקל זנב דג
Arabic name:   Nakhlat câryôtâ
Family:   Arecaceae, Palm Family, דקליים


Life form:   Tree
Stems:   Multi-stemmed clusters, up to 8m tall, 8-20cm in diameter, columnar; stems die after fruiting
Leaves:   Irregular bi-pinnate leaves, fan-shaped and jagged at the tip with many veins, up to 3m long
Inflorescence:   borne among or below leaves, to 85 cm; rachillae 20-60, 25-65 cm; flowers appear in threes, one female flower in between two male ones
Flowers:   Small, separate male and female flowers; male flowers to 10mm; sepals ca. 3mm; petals purple to maroon, 12-15mm; stamens 12-24; female flowers to 5mm; sepals ca. 3mm; petals 4-5mm.
Fruits / pods:   Round green turning blackish-red
Flowering Period:   Summer
Habitat:   Southeast Asia
Distribution:   Native to India, Sri Lanka, to Southeast Asia, introduced to many other tropical countries; escaped cultivation
Chorotype:   India: Andaman Islands


Derivation of the botanical name:

Caryota Greek, karyon, a nut (JON)

mitis Latin, mild; gentle; without spines.
griffithii, named after W. Griffith [1810-1845], a British physician who collected plants.
sobolifera, soboles, referring to the underground creeping base of a stem; having creeping rooting stems.

  • The standard author abbreviation Lour. is used to indicate João de Loureiro (1717 – 1791), a Portuguese Jesuit missionary and botanist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Becc. is used to indicate Odoardo Beccari (1843 – 1920), an Italian naturalist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Wall. is used to indicate Nathaniel Wallich (1786 – 1854), a Danish surgeon and botanist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Mart. is used to indicate Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius (1794 – 1868), a German botanist and explorer.



Flowers appear in threes, one female flower in between two male ones.

Irritating fruits.