The coco de mer: the palm found only on Praslin and Curieuse

What is the coco de mer?

The coco de mer (Lodoicea maldivica) is a palm that grows wild only on Praslin and Curieuse in Seychelles, and it carries the largest seed in the plant kingdom. It is the flagship species of the Vallée de Mai and one of the six endemic Seychelles palms, each the only species in its genus.

The Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF) reports adult trees reaching over 25 metres; the Environment Ministry's species page gives up to 30 metres, with a spineless trunk ringed by leaf scars. The Creole name is koko-d-mer and the ministry's English name is double coconut; Blackmore et al. (2012) also record coco jumeau (twin coconut) and coco fesse.

Where does the coco de mer grow wild?

Wild coco de mer is confined to Praslin and its neighbour Curieuse. On Praslin, the least disturbed stands are in the south: the Vallée de Mai and Fond Peper inside Praslin National Park, and the Ravin de Fond Ferdinand Nature Reserve (Morgan et al., 2017). The Environment Ministry names Fond Ferdinand, Vallée de Mai and Anse Marie-Louise as the three main sanctuaries.

Elsewhere, Morgan et al. (2017) describe mainly small clusters and isolated trees on Curieuse and the rest of Praslin; Morgan et al. (2020) count Curieuse among the remaining large populations, with scattered trees in scrub in northern Praslin and parts of Curieuse. The species once also grew on St Pierre, Chauve-Souris and Île Ronde (Blackmore et al., 2012).

Sources disagree on which site holds the most trees. UNESCO says the Vallée de Mai holds the world's largest population and SIF calls it Seychelles' largest intact coco de mer forest; the Environment Ministry says Fond Ferdinand has the largest population in existence. A 2004 census of adult trees, tabulated by Morgan et al. (2020), counted 1,441 in the Vallée de Mai, 1,380 at Fond Ferdinand and 1,750 on Curieuse.

How big is the coco de mer seed?

Its seed is the heaviest of any plant: SIF says large nuts can weigh up to 20 kg, and Blackmore et al. (2012) give record weights of up to 25 kg for the seed and 45 kg for the whole fruit.

Real nuts vary: a large sample collected by forest wardens weighed 1 to 18 kg fresh (Morgan et al., 2017), and Bellot et al. (2020) cite seed lengths of 17 to 48 cm.

The nuts sink in water (Blackmore et al., 2012), and with only gravity to spread them, seedlings grow in clusters around the mother tree (Morgan et al., 2023).

Male and female coco de mer trees

Every coco de mer is either male or female: males carry long flower spikes (catkins) that shed pollen, and only females bear nuts. Young plants look identical, and the sexes only become visible once a tree reaches adulthood, which in natural forest can take as much as 50 years (Morgan et al., 2020).

Genetic markers show that sex is set genetically and the sexes are produced in roughly equal numbers (Morgan et al., 2020), yet adult populations are often uneven: by 2002 the Vallée de Mai had 1,162 mature trees, about 55% of them male (Blackmore et al., 2012).

In the Vallée de Mai, males flower all year, with a peak of new spikes around November, and can carry up to six spikes at once (Blackmore et al., 2012). SIF says the rare giant bronze gecko feeds on pollen at male catkins and the day gecko Phelsuma sundbergi sits on male flowers high in the canopy, so scan the male trees.

How is the coco de mer pollinated?

The pollinator is not yet known for certain. SIF lists flying insects, wind, skinks, bats, geckos and slugs as suggested pollinators, with research under way.

The published studies point in different directions:

• Blackmore et al. (2012) found coco de mer pollen on small stingless (trigonid) bees and named them the most likely natural pollinator.
• Morgan et al. (2017) thought endemic geckos, and perhaps wind, likely to play an important role, naming the day gecko Phelsuma sundbergi and giant bronze gecko Ailuronyx trachygaster.
• Morgan et al. (2023) cite an unpublished SIF study suggesting endemic geckos are the most important pollinators in natural forest.

Female trees set more fruit when more male trees grow nearby (Morgan et al., 2017).

How long does a coco de mer take to grow?

Slowly. SIF notes that parts of the life cycle can take decades, so estimates vary:

• Nut ripening: five to six years on the tree according to SIF; about ten months of enlarging followed by around five years of ripening according to Blackmore et al. (2012); about seven years according to Morgan et al. (2017).
• Germination: three to six months after the nut falls (SIF). The shoot can grow up to 4 m to reach suitable soil (Blackmore et al., 2012).
• First flowers: around 15 to 50 years (SIF).
• Lifespan: unknown. SIF estimates over 200 years; an older estimate cited by Blackmore et al. (2012) and Morgan et al. (2017) gives up to 350 years.

Legends and history: why a Seychelles palm is named after the Maldives

The nut was known around the Indian Ocean long before anyone knew where it grew, and the belief that it came from under the sea gave it the name coco de mer. Garcia de Orta recorded it in 1563 as coco das Maldivas (Blackmore et al., 2012).

The Environment Ministry says the nuts washed ashore in places such as India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, and calls the name maldivica incorrect. Blackmore et al. (2012) add that the nuts were traded as far as China, valued for supposed medicinal properties, and that Marion Dufresne's expedition traced them to Praslin in 1768. The genus name honours Louis XV of France.

Blackmore et al. (2012) record that male trees walk to the females on stormy nights, and that anyone who sees it dies; the version reported by the BBC in 2011 has them walking at full moon. General Gordon, who visited in 1881, called the Vallée de Mai the Garden of Eden (SIF) and lobbied the British government to buy and protect parts of Praslin and its coco de mer forests (Blackmore et al., 2012). In 1908 a report recommended the government buy the three ravines now called the Vallée de Mai to protect the palm (SIF).

Is the coco de mer protected?

Yes. The coco de mer is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List (assessed 2011), its kernel is on CITES Appendix III (added by Seychelles in 2010), and Seychelles law controls the nut trade.

SIF says the move up from Vulnerable followed rising threats from poaching and fire; the Environment Ministry's endangered species page still shows Vulnerable. Fire has repeatedly damaged the Fond Ferdinand population (Blackmore et al., 2012).

The Coco-de-Mer (Management) Decree, dated 30 January 1978, requires dealers to be licensed, bans moving mature nuts from one place in Seychelles to another without a permit, bans dealing in immature nuts, and requires every nut sold by a licensed dealer to carry a numbered approved label. A 2015 amending Act raised the penalty for most offences to a fine of between R25,000 and R500,000 and imprisonment for two years, or both. Blackmore et al. (2012) give 1995 as the start of legal control of the nut trade, the year of a notice under the decree on declaring nuts held (ECOLEX).

The Vallée de Mai became a nature reserve in 1966 and a World Heritage Site in 1983, Curieuse Marine National Park dates from 11 June 1979, and SIF set 1 February 2025 to celebrate 130 years of coco de mer protection at Fond Ferdinand.

Can you buy a coco de mer nut and take it home?

Yes, if the nut is legally certified. The Vallée de Mai visitor centre shop (SIF) sells nuts with the appropriate certification when in stock, and the Seychelles Parks and Gardens Authority (SPGA) points visitors to the Coco Curieuse Boutique at Baie Laraie.

Under the decree, buying a nut without an approved label or from anyone but a licensed dealer is an offence, and dealers must display a notice telling buyers to keep the label as proof of legal purchase. BBC reporting in 2011 said you also need an export permit to take a nut out of Seychelles. Leave nuts on the forest floor: moving a mature nut without a permit is an offence.

Where to see the coco de mer on Praslin, Curieuse and nearby

The Vallée de Mai, with self-guided paths, is the simplest place to see the palm; Fond Ferdinand and Curieuse are the alternatives. For hours and fees, see each site's own page.

• Vallée de Mai, central Praslin: self-guided paths of about 1.5 to 4 km, with a free map leaflet at the entrance (SIF). No smoking anywhere on site, because of fire risk (SIF).
• Fond Ferdinand, southern Praslin: visitors must be accompanied by a local guide, provided at the site (Environment Ministry). SIF sells tickets online, including a combined ticket with the Vallée de Mai.
• Glacis Noire trail, Praslin National Park: an overview of the Vallée de Mai and its coco de mer forest, according to the ministry.
• Curieuse: reached by boat from Praslin, with wild palms on the rocky slopes of the central hill, according to SPGA.
• Praslin Museum, Côte d'Or: its Tourism Board listing mentions preserved male and female coco de mer flowers and musical instruments made from the shells.