Calathea majestica (Linden) H.Kennedy, Marantaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Low risk, score: -1 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Calathea imperialis (Burgerstein & Abel) L. H. Bailey & Raffill; Calathea princeps (Linden) Regel; Maranta imperialis Bergerstein & Abel; Maranta majestica Linden; Maranta princeps Linden

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Herb 4 to 9.5 feet tall.  Leaves 2-10, basal, 1 on stem; sheath, petiole and pulvinus green; blades ovate to ovate-oblong; juvenile blades 4.5-16.5 x 1.75-6.75 inches, upper side dark green with numerous thin, pink or white lines along veins or 2 lengthwise bands of yellow-green, midvein and margins dark green, glabrous, underside dark purple, with tiny hairs along veins; mature blades 19-39 x 7.5-13.5 inches, pattern disappearing, base rounded to truncate.  Inflorescence ovoid, 3.25-5.25 x 2.5-3.75 inches; bracts 23-42, spirally arranged, stiff, orangish.  Flower sepals yellow-green or reddish orange, stiff; corolla yellow-orange, pubescent; sterile stem purple apically"  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 701).

Habitat/ecology:  (no habitat/ecology info known by PIER)

Propagation:  Rhizomes and perhaps by seed.

Native range:  "Native to tropical rainforests at 500-1,500 feet elevation in the Amazon Basin from southern Colombia to Peru and in northwestern Brazil"  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 701).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Rarotonga Island	introduced cultivated	McCormack, Gerald (2011)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Federated States of Micronesia Kosrae Island	Kosrae Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy (2010) (p. 9)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced cultivated	Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. (2010) (p. 48)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1996) (voucher ID: BISH 650491) Taxon name on voucher: Calathea majestica (Linden) H.Kennedy
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1935) (voucher ID: BISH 16666) Taxon name on voucher: Calathea majestica (Linden) H.Kennedy
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie (2009) (p. 6)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Ecuador (Mainland) Ecuador	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic 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. 22) Cultivated only

Additional information:
Additional online information about Calathea majestica is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

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

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

References:

Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.). 1935. Voucher specimen #BISH16666(Caum, E.L. s.n.).

Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.). 1996. Voucher specimen #BISH650491(Lorence, D.H. 7776).

Charles Darwin Foundation. 2008. Database inventory of introduced plant species in the rural and urban zones of Galapagos. Charles Darwin Foundation, Galapagos, Ecuador.

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.

Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. 2010. Checklist of the vascular plants of Pohnpei with local names and uses. Allertonia, in press. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 146 pp.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy. 2010. Checklist of the plants of Kosrae. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 26 pp.

McCormack, Gerald. 2011. Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga.

Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie. 2009. Report to the Republic of Palau: 2008 update on Invasive Plant Species. USDA Forest Service, Hilo, Hawai‘i. 227 pp.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian Islands and other tropical places. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 908 pp.

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