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The Coco-De-Mer Or the Double Coconut (Lodoicea Maldivica): Myths and Facts

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The Coco-De-Mer Or the Double Coconut (Lodoicea Maldivica): Myths and Facts Mini-review Asian Agri-History Vol. 17, No. 4, 2013 (299–309) 299 The Coco-de-mer or the Double Coconut (Lodoicea maldivica): Myths and Facts AB Damania Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA (email: [email protected]) Abstract The Republic of Seychelles comprises 115 islands occupying a land area of 455 km² in the western Indian Ocean. It represents an archipelago of legendary beauty that extends from 4° and 10° south of the equator and which lies between 480 km and 1,600 km from the east coast of Africa. Of these 115 islands, 41 constitute the oldest mid-oceanic granite islands on earth while a further 74 form the low-lying coral atolls and reef islands of the Outer Islands. A unique palm [Lodoicea maldivica (J.F.Gmel.) Pers.], endemic to a couple of islands in the Seychelles group, has long been at the root of myths, legends, and unbridled speculation. Mature nuts of the palm, the largest seed in the world, have traveled by way of strong currents in the Arabian Sea to such faraway places like the Maldives, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), the Malabar Coast in India and beyond. Because very few people knew of its existence it has many names such as, Coco-de-mer (the coconut of the sea), double coconut, etc. The shape of its male and female infl orescences has given rise to many explanations. The Seychelles Islands transitioned from being uninhabited to being a temporary refuge of pirates, to a dumping ground for African slaves, and then in the possession of France, Great Britain, and fi nally a Republic with a Socialist Government. However, throughout this long period the Coco-de-mer palm did not cease to fascinate botanists, conservationists, ethnologists, and a vast number of just the curious. The nuts and their contents have been reputed to possess some medicinal and even aphrodisiac properties. In the past even the possession of a nut bestowed the owner certain powers. In this article I have attempted to open a window to the reader as to the mystery of this extraordinary plant species that is currently in dire need of preservation. Conservation efforts have been sporadic due to the relative isolation of the islands and their antiquity. Nevertheless, a dedicated group of botanists, conservationists, and nature lovers as well as UNESCO are making great efforts to make sure that the last remaining habitat of the Coco-de-mer palm is kept intact. Lodoicea maldivica (J.F.Gmel.) Pers. is a Lodoicea in the family Arecaceae. It is unique palm tree known by many names severely endangered and is endemic to such as Coco-de-mer, double coconut, the islands of Praslin (about 4000 palms) sea coconut, love nut, Seychelles nut, etc. and Curieuse (a few hundred palms) in the The palm is the sole member of the genus Seychelles Islands which is itself part of the 300 Coco-de-mer or double coconut much larger Mascarene group. In the past the constructed with iron and glass between palm was also found on St Pierre, Chauve- 1844 and 1848 at Kew. Souris, and Ile Ronde (Round Island, an islet near Praslin) in the Seychelles, but has now The granite islands are assumed to owe their become extinct on these islands. The name origin to the break-up of Gondwanaland of the genus, Lodoicea, is derived from during the Jurassic period, making them Lodoicus, the Latinized form of ‘Louis’, in the oldest oceanic islands anywhere in the honor of King Louis XV of France since world (Baker and Miller, 1963). Before these islands were in the possession of the Portuguese mariners rounded the Cape France before England defeated the French of Good Hope and came into contact in an epic sea-battle in December 1810. with the inhabitants of the Seychelles, the After that not only the Seychelles, but also Maldives, India, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), the islands of Mauritius, Rodriguez, and and Indonesia the Coco-de-mer was totally also La Réunion passed into British hands unknown to the Europeans (Jeffrey, 1969). under the Treaty of Paris in 1814. The Seychelles and Rodriguez (Mauritius) islands were a favorite hideaway for pirates The islands of the Seychelles lie in the during the days of buccaneering. In fact, Indian Ocean (Latitude 5” S, Longitude the local people believe there are several 55” E) ca. 1800 km south of Sri Lanka and places just off the beaches where the pirates 1500 km east of Africa. The exceptional hide their loot to return to recover it later biological interest of these islands is due but due to various reasons never did. The not only to their isolation but also to their Seychelles today still have a strong French extreme age. The archipelago is composed infl uence in spite of the fact that just before of over 100 islands, some of which are independence in June 1976 they were ruled very low lying coral islands while others by the British. The early colonizers were are composed of igneous rocks and are of French adventurers and traders that saw the much higher elevation. The Coco-de-mer possibility of establishing an outpost for grows only on the latter granite islands, promoting mercantile intercourse between and unlike the common coconut does not Africa and middle-eastern trade and India grow on sandy soils. The Coco-de-mer and the Far East. The islands’ subsistence grows exclusively on red lateritic soil farming, which was very successful for the derived from granite fragments on hill last 200 years, has been steadily declining sides. At sea-level it grows only on spurs since 1971 when an international airport of granite (Good, 1951). Attempts made by with a long 4-engine jet runway was opened. Sir William Hooker and others to establish This led to tourism becoming the main a specimen of the Coco-de-mer at Kew source of income and livelihood for almost Gardens in England by importing dozens all inhabitants of the islands in one way or of Coco-de-mer nuts proved futile as the another. In fact, in January–February 1985, nuts did not survive beyond germination when this writer explored the Seychelles on stage even when transferred to the tropical behalf of the UN’s Food and Agriculture palm hot house (Watson, 1890) which was Organization (FAO), the government Asian Agri-History Vol. 17, No. 4, 2013 301 offered a good sum of money to all those Vallée de Mai on Praslin Island as a World who used to harass the tourists for alms. Heritage Site in 1983. Also, the Seychelles The scheme was a great success and not a is recognized as a genetic resources hotspot single panhandler could be seen on any of and a center of plant biodiversity by the the islands! International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the World Wildlife The human population of the Seychelles Fund (WWF). It is surmised that plants and Islands right now consists of descendants animals endemic to islands often grow to of African slaves brought to the islands to a much greater size than same or related work in the sugarcane, coconut, and tea species on the mainland. Amongst animals, plantations that the European colonizers gigantism has been noted repeatedly in such developed. Later they were joined by diverse groups as the insects, birds, reptiles, Chinese and Indian indentured laborers. and mammals. Well-known examples Due to the relaxed lifestyle (no part of include the various species of giant tortoise these islands is more than one mile or two which occur (or did occur) on many remote from the sea) there has been considerable oceanic islands such as the Galapagos group mixing of the four races (viz., European, and the Seychelles. In fact, the last of the Chinese, Indian, and African) with the giant tortoise subspecies (Geochelone nigra result that the people of Seychelles, the abingdoni) from the Pinta Island (Puerto “Seychelloise”, have very unique physical Ayora) in the Galapagos (Ecuador) died on features all their own. Their culture and 24 June 2012. There is probably no single language is referred to as ‘Creole’, a mixture explanation of why so many island species of French and African with a singsong achieve a greater size than their mainland tone unique to all islands in the Mascarene relatives (Whittaker, 1998). group which includes La Réunion and the Comoros Islands. The slaves had been The earliest scientifi c work on this unusual originally ‘Malagasy’ which means that they palm was by Durocher (1947) which among were predominantly from Eastern African other things gives us a very good account of countries like Mozambique, Malawi, the mature root system and the method of Tanzania, Zambia, and Nigeria. In addition, germination. The Coco-de-mer is the most once slavery was abolished in America, interesting species of the six monospecifi c whatever slaves that were at sea were set endemic palms in Seychelles since it is the free on the Seychelles Islands. Cinnamon, “only true case of island gigantism among vanilla, tea, and coconuts (for copra export) Seychelles flowering plants, a unique are the predominant commercial crops grown at present. Lodoicea maldivica is a unique palm Over 35% of the fl ora of the Seychelles tree known by many names such as islands is endemic, and hence the United Coco-de-mer, double coconut, sea Nations Educational, Scientifi c and Cultural coconut, love nut, Seychelles nut, etc. Organization (UNESCO) declared the 302 Coco-de-mer or double coconut feature of Seychelles vegetation” (Proctor, 1984). It is one of the most universally well-known plants and holds three global botanical records; the largest fruit of any tree or palm so far recorded weighed in at 42 kg; the mature seeds weighing up to 17.6 kg are the world’s heaviest; and the female fl owers are the largest of any palm.
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