Tree, 9-15 m. high, sparsely branched, with the leaves closely set at branch-apices; trunk to 20 cm. across; wood light, fibrous; bark light brown, with conical spines 5-12 mm. long and with horizontal leaf-scars, enveloping the stem for two-thirds; stilt-roots 100-200 cm. high, to 9 cm. across, with sharp conic spines set in vertical bands.. Leaves 40-230 cm. long, 3-13 cm. wide just above the base, clasping the stem at the base, gradually narrowing towards the flagelliform apex; marginal teeth 3-5 mm. long, 2-13 mm. apart, reddish brown at their apex; teeth on midrib 1-2 mm. long, pointing towards the leaf-apex.. Male inflorescences with 5-6 spikes, the individual spikes 45-60 × 22-30 mm.; bracts resembling the leaves but much widened just above the base, the lowermost up to 32 cm. long and 6 cm. wide, the uppermost ± 4 cm. long and 2 cm. wide; stamens borne in groups of 5-6 on a common stalk in a cymose to subumbellate arrangement; filaments 2.5-4 mm. long; anthers 2.2-3 × 1 mm.; central pistillode absent.. Female inflorescences unknown.. Fruits syncarpous, in infructescences with 1-5 cephalia; peduncle not quite pendent, trigonous, ± 35 cm. long; each syncarp broadly ovoid, somewhat trigonous, 7-11 × 6-10 cm., with 350-800 phalanges. Phalanges l(-3)-locular, with a pyramidal pileus 4-7 mm. high, 7-16 mm. across and a lower pyrene 20-25 mm. long; stigma reniform-rounded.. Fig. 1/4, p. 3.
Riverbanks, in riverine fringe, in association with Syzygium guineense, Albizia gummifera and Bridelia micrantha; at elevations from 760-1,190 metres
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