Cycas
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 Leaves and male cone of Cycas revoluta
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Cycas is a genus of plants. It is the only genus currently known in the cycad family. About 95 species are currently known. The probably best-known of these is cultivated and marketed as Sago Palm or King Sago Palm. The plant is not a true palm, however. The generic name comes from Greek kykas and means "palm tree".
The genus is native to the Old World, with the species concentrated around the equatorial regions. It is native to eastern and southeastern Asia including the Philippines with 6 species (4 of which are endemic), eastern Africa (including Madagascar), northern Australia, Polynesia, and Micronesia. Australia has 26 species, while the Indo-Chinese area has about 30. The northernmost species (C. revoluta) is found at 31°N in southern Japan. The southernmost (C. megacarpa) is found at 26°S in southeast Queensland, Australia.
The plants have often been considered to be a living fossil. The earliest fossils of the genus Cycas appear in the Cenozoic although Cycas-like fossils that may belong to Cycadaceae extend well into the Mesozoic. Cycas is not closely related to other genera of cycads, and phylogenetic studies have shown that Cycadaceae is the sister-group to all other extant cycads.
[change] References and other websites
- Cycad Pages: Cycas
- Singh, R., & Radha P. (2006). Cycas annaikalensis, A new species of Cycas from the Malabar Coast, Western Ghats, India. Brittonia 58 (2): 119-123.
