Barleria prionitis L., Acanthaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: huang hua jia du juan

English: barleria, porcupine flower

French: barléria, picanier jaune, piquant tac-tac

Spanish: espinosa amarilla

Habit:  shrub

Description:  "Erect shrub 60-180 cm high; leaves up to 10 cm long and 4 cm broad; spikes indefinite, the lower bracts not clearly distinguishable from leaves; sepals acuminate, spine-tipped, about 1.5 cm long; capsule beaked, 1.5 cm long; seed about 8 mm long, densely covered with matted hairs. (Adams, 1972; p. 394)

A robust, prickly shrub up to 75 cm high with 3-5 spines, 1-2 cm long occurring in the lower leaf axils. The inflorescence is spike-like with yellow, single flowers. The leaves are ovate (10-13 cm long and 4 cm wide) ending in a short spine. Seeds are 5 mm x 8 mm and flattened" (Csurhes and Edwards, 1998; pp. 26-27).

Habitat/ecology:  "Porcupine flower grows in a wide variety of well-drained soils derived from igneous, metamorphic (including ultramafics) and sedimentary (including limestone) rocks. In the Puerto Rican naturalized range, it grows in areas receiving from about 750 to 900 mm of mean annual precipitation (author's observation). Within the native range, it probably tolerates both higher and lower precipitation, but no data are available.  Porcupine flower is found throughout the hotter parts of India and defoliates annually during the dry season (Parrotta 2001). The species is moderately intolerant of shade, growing in both full sunlight and under light forest canopies.  Porcupine flower may grow as single plants or in large, tangled thickets. Dense stands eliminate most other ground vegetation. However, the species does not compete well in dense stands of tall grass. It is most often found on roadsides, bluffs and bars above streams, overgrazed range, disturbed areas, and farmsteads"  (Wildland shrubs of the United States and its territories).

Commonly planted as an ornamental. Naturalizes in disturbed areas.  In the Northern Territory, Australia, "it is found at several isolated locations over a large area and is starting to spread down water courses.  Field observations in northern Australia suggest the plant may favour riparian habitats and disturbed sites where much of the original native vegetation has been removed." (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; pp. 26-27).

Propagation:  "Seeds is spread short distances when capsules rupture and by water. Spread by humans as ornamental plantings and in discarded garden refuse" (Smith, 2002; p. 27).

Native range:  Tropical Asia, Africa and India (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; pp. 26-27).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Nauru Nauru Island	Nauru Island	introduced cultivated	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, M.-H./Oliver, R. L. (1993) Perhaps naturalized. Voucher cited: Fosberg 58772 (US)
Nauru Nauru Island	Nauru Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. (1994) (pp. 78-79) Voucher cited: Fosberg 58772 (US)
Papua New Guinea Bismarck Archipelago	Bismarck Archipelago	introduced cultivated	Peekel, P. G. [translated by E. E. Henty] (1984) (p. 513) Only in cultivation.
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)		Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (pp. 26-27) ?
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	introduced invasive	Merrill, Elmer D. (1923) (p. 479) In thickets and waste places in and about towns at low altitudes; certainly introduced.

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)	Northern Territory	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (pp. 26-27)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (pp. 26-27)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) Roadsides, thickets, dry places in evergreen broad-leaved forests; ca. 600 m.
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)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011)

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	Lavergne, Christophe (2006) "Naturalisé/±envahissant"
Maldives Maldive Islands	Malè Atoll	cultivated	Fosberg, F. R. (1957) (p. 33) "Cultivated everywhere".
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	introduced invasive	Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe (2004) (p. 344)
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Rodrigues Island	introduced invasive	Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe (2004) (p. 344)
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Seychelles Islands	introduced invasive	Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe (2004) (p. 344)

Comments:  A declared noxious weed in the Northern Territory, Australia (Smith, 2002; p. 27).

Control: 

Chemical:  "Mowing, followed by spraying of the sprouts with broadleaf herbicide, is a general control measure for low shrubs and would probably be effective against porcupine flower"  (Wildland shrubs of the United States and its territories).

Additional information:
Weed Management Guide from the Government of Australia. (PDF format).
Information and photos from Weeds Australia.
Fact sheet from "Wildland shrubs of the United States and its territories: thamnic descriptions" (PDF format).

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

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

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

References:

Adams, C. D. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica. University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica. 848 pp.

Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. 1998. Potential environmental weeds in Australia: Candidate species for preventative control. Canberra, Australia. Biodiversity Group, Environment Australia. 208 pp.

Fosberg, F. R. 1957. The Maldive Islands, Indian Ocean. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 58. Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, Washington. 37 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, M.-H./Oliver, R. L. 1993. Flora of Micronesia. Part 5. Bignoniaceae--Rubiaceae. Smithsonian Contrib. Bot. 81: 1-135.

Francis, John K., ed. 2009. Wildland Shrubs of the United States and its Territories: Thamnic Descriptions General Technical Report IITF-WB-1 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestry and Shrub Sciences Laboratory (online resource).

Lavergne, Christophe. 2006. List des especes exotiques envahissantes a La Reunion. Unpublished manuscript (Excel file). .

Merrill, Elmer D. 1923. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, vol. 3 [reprint]. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 628 pp.

Meyer, Jean-Yves/Lavergne, Christophe. 2004. Beautés fatales: Acanthaceae species as invasive alien plants on tropical Indo-Pacific Islands. Diversity and Distributions 10 (2004): 333-347.

Peekel, P. G. [translated by E. E. Henty]. 1984. Flora of the Bismarck Archipelago for naturalists. Office of Forests, Division of Botany, Lae, Papua New Guinea. 638 pp. ISBN 9980-66-000-7.

Smith, Nicholas M. 2002. Weeds of the wet/dry tropics of Australia - a field guide. Environment Centre NT, Inc. 112 pp.

Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. 1994. The flora of Nauru. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. Atoll Research Bulletin 392:1-223.

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

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).