Zamia pumila
Zamia pumila, commonly known as guáyiga or guáyara in Spanish, is a small, tough, woody cycad native to the Greater Antilles. Z. pumila was the first species described for the genus and, therefore, is the type species for the genus Zamia, the Zamia pumila species complex, and the family Zamiaceae.
Description
This cycad contains reddish seed cones with a distinct acuminate tip. The leaves are long, with 5-30 pairs of leaflets. Each leaflet is linear to lanceolate or oblong-obovate, 8–25 cm long and 0.5–2 cm broad, with distinct teeth at the tip. They are often revolute, with prickly petioles. It is similar in many respects to Z. furfuracea, but with slightly narrower leaflets, and to Z. integrifolia, which differs in the more commonly entire leaflets.This is a low-growing plant, with trunk that grows to 3–25 cm high and diameter, but is often subterranean. Over time, it forms a multi-branched cluster, with a large, tuberous root system, which is actually an extension of the above-ground stems.
Like other cycads, Z. pumila is dioecious, having male or female plants. The male cones are cylindrical, growing to 3–15 cm long; they are often clustered. The female cones are elongate-ovoid and grow to 6–15 cm long and 4–6 cm in diameter. Pollination is done by certain insects, namely the cycad weevil Rhopalotria slossoni.