Date palm of the Tabernacles. Palm branches were scattered before Jesus as he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Date palm Phoenix dactylifera, commonly known as date or date palm, is a flowering plant species in the palm family, Arecaceae, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit. Although its place of origin is unknown because of long cultivation, it probably originated from the Fertile Crescent region straddling between Egypt and Mesopotamia. The species is widely cultivated across Northern Africa, The Middle East, The Horn of Africa and South Asia, and is naturalized in many tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. "P. dactylifera" is the type
Madagascan fruit bat that it is absent from these areas. It requires suitable rock fissures and caves in which to roost during the day. Colony size varies between about ten and five hundred individuals. Examination of the droppings from the Madagascan fruit bat show that it mainly consumes fruit but also feeds on the flowers of "Eucalyptus" spp.. It was found to fly as far as to reach trees of "Polyscias" spp. while largely neglecting the guava trees "Psidium" near its roost. Seeds smaller than about in diameter were swallowed. This helped with dispersal of the seed and it has been shown that