Small bushy erect or sometimes semi-procumbent monoecious palms,' in some cases more or less tree-like, most of them very spiniferous, commonly soboliferous from short rootstocks, spadices interfoliar, spines usually borne on all parts ex-cept perhaps on flowers and fruits: spadices short and covered in two spiniferous cymbas one of which is persistent:-leaves pinnate or pinnatisect or pinnately lobed, the parts standing in one plane: spadix a single unbranched-compact spike like an aroid within its spathe or in other cases with short simple spreading branches bearing pistillate flowers on lower part and staminates-on the upper part although typically with a pistillate between 2 staminates, not sunken in the rachis, floral parts a calyx of 3 sepals or lobes, petals same; staminate flowers with urceolate or cup-like calyx that enlarges in fruit, petals or corolla-lobes much larger, valvate, stamens 6-12, pistillode very small or absent, the full staminate bud often angular from compression; pistillate flowers usually smaller, ovary 3-loculed, stigmas 3 and mostly conspicuous at moment of anthesis: fruit drupa-ceous, small, globular or oblate or pyriform or turbinate, mostly less than 5 cm. long, 1-seeded, mesocarp more or less succulent even though thin and usually of little substance, mealy or fibrous when dry, exterior cream-white or yellowish, orange or reddish or purplish and sometimes aculeate or setose but the armature commonly soon vanishing; floral envelopes accrescent and forming a cupule at base of fruit, sometimes the lobes in each series separate and in other cases the series constituting a double crenate cup; nutlet with 3 prominent pores one of which is functional; albumen hard and homogeneous; raphe represented usually in reticulations.
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