Acrocomia intumescens

de Lima, Natácia Evangelista, Carvalho, Alexandre Assis, Meerow, Alan William & Manfrin, Maura Helena, 2018, A review of the palm genus Acrocomia: Neotropical green gold, Organisms Diversity & Evolution (New York, N. Y.) 18 (2), pp. 151-161 : 157

Acrocomia intumescens

Acrocomia intumescens is known by several common names, such as macaúba, macaíba, bocaiúva, coco-baboso, palmeira-barriguda, macaúba-barriguda, and coco de espinho ( Lorenzi et al. 2010). Some researchers assume that A. aculeata and A. intumescens are distinct species due to the morphological characters ( Vianna et al. 2017b; Vianna et al. 2017c; Lorenzi et al. 2010) (e.g., epicuticular patterns of wax deposition, different colors of epicarp and mesocarp, tumescent stem and deciduous leafs at the sheath insertion point) and the information contained in Kew Royal Botanic Gardens and Palmweb. The phylogenetic study by Meerow et al. (2015) found a node with posterior probabilities = 1 resolving A. aculeata and A. intumescens as sister species, and the association of this data with morphological traits could elucidate if they are or not different species. However, some authors do not recognize this distinction and include A. intumescens as a synonym of A. aculeata ( Govaerts and Dransfield 2005; Henderson 2002; Henderson et al. 1995). Thus, it is not possible to declare A. intumescens as a distinct species by reviewing the literature.

In the Web of Science platform, we found six articles that included the species in question. By refining the search and using the combination B Acrocomia aculeata" (in the case of adopting A. intumescens as a synonym) and B Northeast" (northeast) and/or B Caatinga," there was no result. This highlights the lack of ethnobotanical and ecological studies for this species. For example, there were no specific studies about consumption of A. intumescens fruits and seeds by fauna of the Brazilian northeast.

Acrocomia intumescens is distributed in Atlantic Forest along the Brazilian northeast coast and in the scattered areas of forest extensions into the Caatinga , with records occurring in Alagoas, Pernambuco, Paraíba, Bahia, and Ceará states, and in the endemic center of the São Francisco River ( Lorenzi et al. 2010). We compiled 23 points of geographical distribution of this species based on records available in Lista de Espécies da Flora do Brasil (http://floradobrasil.jbrj.gov. br/), Global Biodiversity Information Facility - GBIF (http:// www.gbif.org/), speciesLink (http://splink.cria.org.br/), Herbário Virtual da Flora e dos Fungos - INCT (http://inct. florabrasil.net/), and from personal observations in field.

A set of characteristics makes A. intumescens promising in the industry. Specific searches for the species show that besides being rich in carotenoids, it has a high oleic acid concentration in the pulp and lauric acid in the seed, which could serve as alternative sources of fat for the food industry and cookery. Its high oleic acid concentration makes it a promising species for the biodiesel industry ( Bora and Rocha 2004; Silva 2015).

The presence of fatty acids in A. intumescens fruit differs positively in quality and quantity from the fruits of A. aculeata and A. sclerocarpa (synonymized as A. aculeata ) ( Bora and Rocha 2004). This species satisfactorily grows even in areas with low fertility, tolerates fire, and can be cultivated in areas characterized by prolonged drought, which makes it an excellent candidate for biomass and biofuel production in semi-arid areas ( Silva 2015).

Local communities employ the fruits in their diet by producing cakes and jam and consuming them directly after boiling. They take advantage of the stem for building fences and houses and leaves for manufacturing handicraft products and home roofs. They also use the species as a source of income by selling the fruits and derived products (soap, oil, cosmetics) independently or in cooperatives (Cerratinga Macaúba: espécies de vários biomas n.d.) (De Lima, personal communication).