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Stem to 25m tall, almost always ventricose, to 80cm diameter. Leaves 18 – 27 in the crown; petiole and sheath 130 – 220 cm long; petiole 3.2 – 9 cm wide, robust, with large (0.4 – 2.8 cm long), recurved black teeth on the margins, yellow-orange in the distal portion, darkening to brown-black towards the trunk, though in immature plants, the petiole may be completely black; petiole spines extending along the margin of the first leaflet; costa 80 – 170 cm long; adaxial hastula conspicuous, to 2.9 cm high, abaxial hastula rudimentary; lamina radius to 190 cm maximum, dense indumentum on the ribs of some immature leaves; leaflets 86 – 120, 4.7 – 11 cm wide, apices acute and entire or splitting longitudinally with age, shortest leaflet 45 – 92 cm long, leaf divided to 58 – 95 cm; commissural veins 8 – 15 per cm, leaf anatomy isolateral. Staminate inflorescences branched to two orders, upper subtending branches terminating in 1 – 3 rachillae; rachillae green-brown and catkin-like, 37 – 50 cm long, 2.3 – 3.8 cm diameter, sometimes with a mamilliform apex; rachilla bracts form pits that contain a cincinnus of 8 – 14 staminate flowers. Pistillate inflorescences spicate; flower-bearing portion 36 – 160 cm long with 10 – 28 flowers arranged spirally. Staminate flowers 0.2 – 0.7 cm long, exserted individually from the pits; bracteoles 0.8 × 0.5 cm; calyx 0.4 × 0.2 cm and shallowly divided into three sepals, petal lobes 0.15 × 0.1 cm; stamens 6 with very short filaments, 0.02 × 0.04 cm, anthers 0.02 × 0.05 cm; pistillode minute. Pollen monosulcate, elliptical, 49 – 71 μm long, aperture 37 – 71 μm long, polar axis 32 – 61 μm long; tectum perforate, sparsely covered with supratectal gemmae. Pistillate flowers 3 × 3 cm, bracteoles 2 cm diam., sepals 1.5 × 2 cm and petals 1 × 1.5 cm. Fruits massive, 7 – 17 × 7 – 11 cm, ovoid, flattened at the apex, or with a depressed apex; fragrant, yellow to orange or red at maturity; produced inside persistent perianth segments; pyrenes 1 – 3, 6.4 – 10.9 cm × 5.4 – 8.0 cm × 4.2 – 5.7 cm, somewhat bilobed; some pyrenes have one or two external longitudinal furrows; internal flanges absent. (R.P. Bayton. 2007)

Riverine forest and savanna in low-lying areas, particularly on sandy or alluvial soils. Borassus aethiopum can form dense almost monospecific forest stands or is a component of more diverse riverine forest. However, it is as the main component of palm savannas for which it is best known. Borassus aethiopum is well adapted to fire and herbivory and prospers in areas with frequent burning and browsing. After the pyrenes are dispersed, the embryo is buried underground by the extending cotyledonary petiole (Barot & Gignoux 1999). The meristem is thus protected in the early years of life during a period known as the establishment phase. After several years surviving as a small cluster of leaves, the palm finally generates a stem and this grows rapidly. At this stage, the meristem is vulnerable to fire and herbivory, but is protected to some extent by the skirt of dead leaves that clothes the stem. The dead leaf blades are highly-flammable, but the woody petioles are more persistent and this may allow brush fires to pass quickly; the leaf blade is quickly consumed, but the petiole burns slowly, keeping the fire away from the meristem. As a result, the stem is covered with petioles, which may also serve as a deterrent to large herbivores as the petioles are armed with spines. The accumulated leaf sheathes and petioles are shed cleanly at maturity (Barot & Gignoux 1999). At this point, the meristem is protected from fire and herbivory by virtue of its height above the ground. (R.P. Bayton. 2007)

Least concern. Borassus aethiopum is widespread and common in a number of African countries. While several populations are in decline (Sambou et al. 1992; 2002), the palm remains common. Borassus sambiranensis is listed by the IUCN as endangered (EN A1c) due to habitat loss/degradation and suppression of regeneration by fire. It is perhaps unfortunate that by placing this taxon in synonymy with the widespread B. aethiopum, the conservation status of the Madagascar populations will be masked. (R.P. Bayton. 2007)

Least Concerned

Northern Provinces, Zaire, Madagascar, Senegal, Benin, Chad, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Zambia, Burkina, Malawi, Mali, Comoros, Niger, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Sudan, Central African Republic, Togo, Mozambique