Areca triandra Roxb., Arecaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 5 (Go to the risk assessment).

Other Latin names:  Areca alicae W. Hill ex F. Muell.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: Australian areca palm, wild areca palm

Habit:  tree

Description:  "This clustering species can have up to a dozen trunks per plant, each of which can attain a height of 30 feet.  The trunks are green in their newer parts and grayish in their older parts, diaphanously thin and elegant, and are never more than 3 inches in diameter, encircled with widely spaced whitish circles of leaf base scars.  The crownshaft is 3 to 4 feet high, smooth, and green, and barely bulging at its base.  The leaves are similar to those of betel-nut palm but usually darker green and with larger fused terminal leaflets; there are generally no more than six leaves per trunk.  The palms are monoecious with both male and female flowers in each inflorescence, the latter emerging from beneath the crownshaft.  The tiny, greenish white, fragrant blossoms produce clusters of 1-inch-wide, ovoid, brownish orange to reddish orange fruits. The species varies mainly in the ultimate height of the trunks and the amount of suckering, there are even some individuals with solitary trunks"  (Riffle & Craft, 2003; pp. 255-256).

Habitat/ecology:  "This palm does not tolerate frost.  It requires partial shade when young but, as an adult, can withstand full sun, even in hot climates.  It is also a true water lover and needs a rich, humus-laden, friable soil with unimpeded drainage"  (Riffle & Craft, 2003; pp. 255-256).

Propagation:  Seeds and suckers  (Riffle & Craft, 2003; pp. 255-256).

Native range:  "Wet regions at low elevations in eastern India, Southeast Asia, eastern Indonesia and the Philippines"  (Riffle & Craft, 2003; pp. 255-256).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1989) (voucher ID: BISH 618321) Taxon name on voucher: Areca triandra Roxb.
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 15) Cultivated only
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

Additional information:
Information from the ASEAN Tropical Plant Database.

Additional online information about Areca triandra is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Areca triandra as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Areca triandra may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.). 1989. Voucher specimen #BISH618321(Baker, R.F. 89018-2).

Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native, naturalised and cultivated species. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. 273 pp.

Riffle, Robert Lee/Craft, Paul. 2003. An encyclopedia of cultivated palms. Timber Press. 516 pp. ISBN 0-88192-558-6.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.