Calamus sedens J.Dransf.

Short acaulescent or erect solitary non-climbing palm. Stems rarely exceeding 2 m long, without sheaths c. 4.5 cm diam., with sheaths to 6 cm diam., internodes 2–3 cm long. Leaf ecirrate; sheaths dull green, densely covered in paler green spines of varying length, to 4 cm long, but to 20 cm long and upward pointing around the leaf sheath mouth, dense brownish indumentum abundant between the spines, spines generally very sparse or absent below the petiole; knee absent; ocrea poorly defined; flagellum absent; petiole 60–100 cm long, armed along the margins with robust lateral spines to 4 cm long and scattered smaller spines on adaxial and abaxial surfaces; rachis to 2 m long; leaflets 20–30 on each side of the rachis, rather distant, broad and conspicuously plicate, the longest to 50 x 5 cm, the distalmost pair c. 15 x 2 cm and markedly divergent. Inflorescence lacking a flagellum, confusingly variable but the male and female nevertheless superficially similar, the male branched to 3 orders, the female to 2 orders; peduncle often to 60 cm long; primary bracts very conspicuous, longitudinally splitting, but remaining tubular near the base, enclosing the whole inflorescence or partial inflorescence, the bracts bright mid brown, armed with short spines near the base only and densely covered in bright brown indumentum, adaxially shining brown; inflorescences occasionally very short, not exceeding 20 cm including the peduncle; male rachillae very congested c. 0.6 x 0.1 cm, female rachillae usually less crowded to 4 x 0.4 cm. Mature fruit rounded, c. 0.8–1 cm diam., with a prominent beak to 0.15x 0.15 cm, and covered in 15–18 vertical rows of bright red-brown scales. Seed rounded, c. 0.8 cm diam., flattened on one side, with a hollow next to the attachment; endosperm homogeneous. Seedling leaf bifid with strongly divergent leaflets.