Delonix regia is a species of flowering plant in the bean family Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae native to Madagascar. It is noted for its fern-like leaves and flamboyant display of orange-red flowers over summer. In many tropical parts of the world it is grown as an ornamental tree and in English it is given the name royal poinciana, flamboyant, phoenix flower, flame of the forest, or flame tree (one of several species given this name). This species was previously placed in the genus Poinciana, named for Phillippe de Longvilliers de Poincy, the 17th-century governor of Saint Christopher (Saint Kitts). It is a non-nodulating legume. Description The flowers of Delonix regia are large, with four spreading scarlet or orange-red petals up to long, and a fifth upright petal called the standard, which is slightly larger and spotted with yellow and white. They appear in corymbs along and at the ends of branches. The naturally occurring variety flavida (Bengali: Radhachura) has yellow flowers. The pods are green and flaccid when young and turn dark-brown and woody. They can be up to long and wide. The seeds are small, weighing around on average. The compound (doubly pinnate) leaves have a feathery appearance and are a characteristic light, bright green. Each leaf is long with 20 to 40 pairs of primary leaflets or pinnae, each divided into 10–20 pairs of secondary leaflets or pinnules. Pollen grains are elongated, approximately 52 µm in size. Distribution Delonix regia is endemic to Madagascar's dry deciduous forests, but has been introduced into tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. In the wild it is endangered, but it is widely cultivated elsewhere and is regarded as naturalised in many of the locations where it is grown: North America In the continental United States, it grows in South Florida, Central Florida, and in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. It also grows in humid parts of Mexico, especially in the Yucatan peninsula. Caribbean and Central America In the Caribbean it is featured in many Dominican and Puerto Rican paintings. It can also be found in Belize, The Bahamas, Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, U.S. Virgin Islands, Sint Maarten,Trinidad and Tobago, Cayman Islands, Grenada, Jamaica, Curaçao and Saint Vincent And The Grenadines. It is the national flower of St. Kitts and Nevis. It can also be found in Bermuda, and Hawaii. The town of Peñuelas, Puerto Rico, located about west of Ponce, is