This study aims to evaluate the effect of harvest date on the chemical composition of patauá (Oenocarpus bataua Mart.). Fruits were harvested monthly during the harvest season (June–December, 2009) from native plants in the Adolpho Ducke Forest Reserve located in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. The patauá was assessed for pulp yield and chemical composition. Variations in the bunch size, quantity of fruits, chemical constituents and calories occur throughout the season. The pulp yield showed two plateaus, the first from June to September and the second from October to December. The pulp yield was highest in the last three months, the amount of added water equilibrates the total solids and the lipids stood out as the major chemical constituent. At the end of harvest, the patauá became dry and oily and less fibrous. Despite the significant differences, considering that the pulp yield and solids content can be standardized by added water, the entire period of the season may be indicated for the patauá can be periodically collected and considered as a high-energy food for the people of Amazon. 1. Introduction The Amazon has a great diversity of fruit species, and many of them are domesticated and present importance in the primary sector and commerce [1, 2]. Various palms native to Amazonia and other tropical regions of Latin America have been the subject of research and development and require sustainable extractivism [3]. This activity allows the exploitation of products from the forest and of biodiversity valorization [4, 5]. In the Amazon, the fruits of the palm trees such as a？aí (Euterpe oleracea and E. precatoria), bacaba (Oenocarpus bacaba), buriti (Mauritia flexuosa), inajá (Maximiliana maripa), and patauá (Oenocarpus bataua) have similarities in the process of production, consumption, and consistency of pulps [2]. Before the pulping, all fruits should remain immersed in water slightly tepid to softening of the edible portion. Then, in pulping process is necessary the addition of the water. In the pulper occurs the scraping/pressing of the fruit (the edible portion is released and fragmented) followed by sieving (retention of the seeds and fragments non-crushed) and finally getting the pulp completely homogenized. This highly dense juice is popularly known as pulp or “wine” and consumed, added or not, of the manioc flour, “tapioca” flour, salt, or sugar [4, 5]. The other similarity between them is due to high content of unsaturated fatty acid in buriti, tucum？ (Astrocaryum vulgare), inajá, mari (Poraqueiba paraensis), and patauá [6]. The color,
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