Phoenix atlantica in 1935 by the French botanist Auguste Chevalier. Its appearance is very similar to "Phoenix dactylifera", being more similar in form to "P. dactylifera" than to "Phoenix canariensis", and possessing characters of both. Tamareira is a clustering palm with 2 to 6 trunks, 5–15 m in height with dark green leaves 2–3 m in length. "P. atlantica" can be distinguished easily from "P. canariensis" by its clustering growth form and its shorter, straighter leaves. The Canary Island date palm is adapted to a wetter climate and cooler temperatures, down to −8 °C. Other distinctions between "P. atlantica" and "P. dactylifera"
Niebla dactylifera collections be studied, especially of "Niebla" collected in California and the Channel Islands. Additional specimens were studied through loans obtained by the U.S. National Herbarium (Smithsonian Institution) from the University of Colorado at Boulder and from the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. "Niebla dactylifera" was discovered among the borrowed specimens of "Niebla". Niebla dactylifera Niebla dactylifera is a fruticose lichen that grows only on San Nicolas Island in the Channel Islands of California. The epithet, "dactylifera", is in reference to the terminal finger-like branches. "Niebla dactylifera" is recognized by the thallus divided into tubular-prismatic branches that arise from a