Aiphanes grandis Borchs. & Balslev

A large palm. The stems are solitary. They are 10-21 m tall. The trunk is 17 cm across. It has very long black spines. There are 7-10 leaves. There are many leaflets arranged in clusters of 5-8. The middle ones are 80 cm long and 8 cm wide. The bract around the flowering stalk is long and woody. It has spines. There are about 200 flowering branches. The fruit hang down. The fruit are round and 2-2.3 cm across. They are dull green. They have soft, black easily removed small spines.

It is a tropical plant. It grows in humid regions. It grows between 1100 and 1700 m altitude in Ecuador.

The palm heart is eaten raw or cooked. The fruit are boiled in water then the seeds are puried and cooked with sugar cane.

Can be grown by seedlings.