Roystonea regia

Royal palm
Native habitat in Collier-Seminole State Park, Florida
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Imperiled  (NatureServe)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Arecales
Family:	Arecaceae
Genus:	Roystonea
Species:	R. regia
Binomial name
Roystonea regia (Kunth) O.F.Cook
Natural range of Roystonea regia
Synonyms[3]
Oreodoxa regia Kunth Oenocarpus regius (Kunth) Spreng. Palma elata W.Bartram Roystonea floridana O.F.Cook Euterpe jenmanii C.H.Wright Euterpe ventricosa C.H.Wright Roystonea jenmanii (C.H.Wright) Burret Roystonea elata (W.Bartram) F.Harper Roystonea ventricosa (C.H.Wright) L.H.Bailey Roystonea regia var. hondurensis P.H.Allen

Roystonea regia, commonly known as the royal palm, Cuban royal palm, or Florida royal palm,^[4] is a species of palm native to Mexico, the Caribbean, Florida, and parts of Central America. A large and attractive palm, it has been planted throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental tree. Although it is sometimes called R. elata, the conserved name R. regia is now the correct name for the species. The royal palm reaches heights from 15–24 m (50–80 ft) tall.^[5] Populations in Cuba and Florida were long seen as separate species, but are now considered a single species.

Widely planted as an ornamental, R. regia is also used for thatch, construction timber, and in some forms of traditional medicine, although there is currently no valid scientific evidence to support the efficacy or use of any palm species for medicinal purposes. The fruit is eaten by birds and bats (which disperse the seeds) and fed to livestock. Its flowers are visited by birds and bats, and it serves as a roosting site and food source for a variety of animals. Roystonea regia is the national tree of Cuba,^[6] and has a religious role both in Santería and Christianity, where it is used in Palm Sunday observances.