Zamia integrifolia L.f.

FLORIDA ARROWROOT; COONTIE

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Two varieties of this species in Florida are recognized by Griffith et al. (2021), with var. umbrosa restricted to northeastern Florida. This taxonomy recognizes Z. integrifolia as native to Florida and the Bahamas, and Z. pumila as endemic to the West Indies (Stevenson 1987; Salas-Leiva et al. 2013; Ward 2016). Previous taxonomies had used Z. pumila to refer to plants in Florida (Eckenwalder 1980). The starchy subterranean stem has been used a food source (Clevenger 1921; Hann 1986; Austin 2004). The plant also contains the toxic azoxy glycoside cycasin (Castillo-Guevara & Rico-Gray 2003), and food from Zamia must be properly prepared to remove this toxin. The butterfly Eumaeus atala accumulates cycasin as it feeds on Zamia (Rothschild et al. 1986.) BMAA is a neurodegenerative toxic amino acid that is potentially found in this species (Schneider et al. 2002), possibly produced by symbiotic nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria such as Nostoc which have been documented in the roots of Z. integrifolia (Zimmerman & Rosen 1992).

Native