Casuarina cunninghamiana Miq., Casuarinaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 12 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: xi zhi mu ma huang

English: creek-oak, cunninghamia beefwood, fire-oak, gray sheoak, river oak, river she-oak, small cone ironwood

French: filao de Nouvelle-Hollande, filao des Hauts

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Tree 15-35 m high. Bark finely fissured and scaly, grey-brown. Teeth on new shoots erect. Branchlets drooping in vigorous specimens, erect in depauperate specimens; articles 4-9 mm long, 0.4-0.7 mm diam., mostly glabrous; edges of furrows often marked (when dry) by a slight ridge; phyllichnia angular to flat with a median rib; teeth 6-10, erect, 0.3-0.5 mm long, marcescent or not. Male spikes 0.4-4 cm long, 11-13 whorls per cm; anther 0.4-0.7 mm long. Cones sparsely pubescent; peduncle 2-9 mm long; cone body 7-14 mm long, 4-6 mm diam.; bracteoles broadly acute to acute. Samara 3-4 mm long." (George, 1989; p. 106)

"Trees to over 20 m tall, often planted at higher (1,000-2,000 m) altitudes; green branchlets with internodes averaging 3-6 mm long, 0.4-0.6 mm thick, very sparsely puberulent with minute whitish hairs 0.03-0.1 mm long. Leaves scale-like, in whorls of usually 8 (7 to 10), free distal portion 0.3-0.5 mm long, acute. Male spikes about 2 cm long and 1 mm thick; female cones 6-10 mm thick at maturity; the samara 3-5 mm long, grayish brown, with the wing becoming twice as long as the body of the fruit" (Berger, 1971; p. 4).

Habitat/ecology:  "Grows along permanent streams" (George, 1989; p. 106).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Australia, naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cook Islands Cook Islands	Cook Islands		McCormack, Gerald (2013)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawaiian Islands	introduced cultivated	Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral/Imada, Clyde T. (2000) (p. 19)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	native	Australian Biological Resources Study (2013)
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	native	Australian Biological Resources Study (2013)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	Australian Biological Resources Study (2013)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 73) Cultivated, roadside tree.
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 511) Known from one site only...established on a bank near a shelter belt of the same species.
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 24) Cultivated only

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	MacDonald, I. A. W./Thebaud, C./Strahm, W. A./Strasberg, D. (1991) (pp. 51-61)
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced cultivated	Lavergne, Christophe (2006) "Cultivé/subspontanée"
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Baret, Stephane/Rouget, Mathieu/Richardson, David M./Lavergne, Christophe/Egoh, Benis/Dupont, Joel/Strasberg, Dominique (2006) (p. 758)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
South Africa South Africa	South Africa (Republic of)	introduced	Henderson, Lesley (1995)
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)

Control:  See control methods for Casuarina equisetifolia.