Conyza sumatrensis (Retz.) E. Walker, Asteraceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Conyza albida Willd. ex Spreng.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: broadleaf fleabane, fleabane, tall fleabane

Fijian: matakaro, tho ni papalangi, tho ni vavalangi, thovuka, tumbua, wavuwavu

Tongan: pakaka

Habit:  herb

Description: 

Genus: "Annual or perennial erect herbs with alternate leaves; flowering heads rather small, numerous, in terminal corymbiform or paniculiform clusters, heterogamous, more or less disciform, the phyllaries narrow, thin, scarcely herbaceous, 2-4 seriate, soon spreading and becoming reflexed, the receptacle convex or flat, naked; female flowers very numerous, commonly 30-200, in few-several peripheral series, fertile, the corolla tubular and eligulate or in some species the outermost ones with a very short but well-defined ligule; disk (central) flowers commonly fewer than 20, perfect, fertile or sterile, the corolla tubular, (4 or) 5-lobed, the anther bases obtuse or somewhat ariculate, the style branches flattened, nearly linear to lanceolate; achenes oblong-elliptic to obovoid, more or less compressed, the pappus composed of mostly 10-30 conspicuous, subcapillary, barbellate bristles, sometimes with an outer series of much shorter bristles"  (Smith, 1991; pp. 307-308).

Species:  "A coarse herb 0.5-1.5 m high...; corolla white or brown-tinged; style branches white; pappus stramineous to white"  (Smith, 1991; pp. 307-308).

Similar species: Conyza bonariensis

Key to the species (Smith, 1991; pp. 307-308):

C. bonariensis: "Newly exposed receptacles of old heads (2-) 2.5-4.5 mm across, not angular pitted or rarely with 2-3 pits in centre; mature heads 5-6 mm long."

C. sumatrensis:  "Newly exposed receptacles of old heads usually 1.5-2.5 (-3) mm across, angular pitted with projecting points at the angles, sometimes pits and pit margins eroded with age; mature heads 4-5 mm long."

Habitat/ecology:  In Fiji, "from near sea level to 900 m, naturalized on sand dunes and on open hills among ferns and reeds, along roadsides, and in forested areas along streams" (Smith, 1991; pp. 307-308).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  "Indigenous in South America, but now widely adventive; sometimes also considered indigenous in southeastern Asia and Malesia by authors who distinguish Conyza sumatrensis as a distinct taxon.  It was probably an early arrival in Pacific archipelagoes, possibly an inadvertent aboriginal introduction in some areas." (Smith, 1991; pp. 307-308).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
American Samoa Tutuila Islands	Tutuila Island		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 90)
American Samoa Tutuila Islands	Tutuila Island		Anon. (1988) (p. 1)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced	Pickard, J. (1984) (p. 205)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 18) Vouchers cited: P.S. Green 1948 (K), A.C. Beauglehole 5645 (MEL), L.A.S. Johnson & A.N. Rodd 1222 (NSW)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 8) Vouchers cited: P. Ralston 35 (K); W.R. Sykes NI 927 (CHR); 1889 & 1902, I. Robinson (NSW)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Lakemba Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Garnock-Jones 927. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Matuku Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 111. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Nairai Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 157. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Ngau Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 206. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Ovalau Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 238. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Taveuni Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Seemann 261. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Totoya Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 73. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Vanua Levu Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Vouchers cited: DA 10513, Harwood 94. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Vanua Mbalavu Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Graeffe s. n. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Vouchers cited: Greenwood 246, Greenwood 410, Smith 4264, Parks 20623, DA 10672, Barclay s. n. See comment below.
Fiji Fiji Islands	Wakaya Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (pp. 307-308) Voucher cited: Milne 375. See comment below.
Japan (offshore islands) Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	introduced	Kato, Hidetoshi (2007)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Lifou	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 34) Voucher cited: Schmid 1000 (NOU)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Îles Ouvéa (Ouvea Atoll)	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 34) Voucher cited: Schmid 2304
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Tiga	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 34) Voucher cited: MacKee 45906
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 34) Vouchers cited: Bourret 703 (NOU), Hoff 921, MacKee 42506
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		Waterhouse, D. F. (1993) (p. 65)
Samoa Western Samoa Islands	Western Samoa Islands		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 90)
Tonga Tonga Islands	Tonga Islands		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 90)

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)	Queensland	introduced invasive	Queensland Herbarium (2002) (p. 3)
China China	Hong Kong	introduced invasive	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (pp. 278-279) In wasteland.
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)		Waterhouse, D. F. (1993) (p. 65)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 190)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)		Waterhouse, D. F. (1993) (p. 65)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	introduced invasive	Ching-I Peng, ed. (2011) "Common in open, waste fields and construction sites from lowlands to 2,000 m".

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Christmas Island Group	Christmas Island	introduced invasive	Swarbrick, J. T. (1997) (p. 110)
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)

Comments:  Fiji specimens are listed as C. bonariensis by Smith (1991; pp. 307-308), who states that it might be better classified as C. sumatrensis. They are listed here as C. sumatrensis.

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

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

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

References:

Anon. 1988. Weed list for American Samoa by cropping system. Checklist dated 07/13/88, origin unknown. 3 pp.

Ching-I Peng, ed. 2011. Digital flora of Taiwan (online resource).

Kato, Hidetoshi. 2007. Herbarium records of Makino Herbarium, Tokyo Metropolitan University. Personal communication.

MacDonald, I. A. W./Thebaud, C./Strahm, W. A./Strasberg, D. 1991. Effects of alien plant invasions on native vegetation remnants on La Reunion (Mascarenes Islands, Indian Ocean). Environmental Conservation 18 (1):51-61.

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro. 2004. Invasive alien species in Japan: the status quo and the new regulation for prevention of their adverse effects. Global Environmental Research 8(2)/2004: 171-191.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1994. Flora of Australia. Vol. 49, Oceanic islands 1. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Pickard, J. 1984. Exotic plants on Lord Howe Island: Distribution in space and time, 1853-1981. J. of Biogeography 11:181-208.

Queensland Herbarium. 2002. Invasive Naturalised Plants in Southeast Queensland, alphabetical by genus. Modified from: Batianoff, George N. and Butler, Don W. (2002). Assessment of Invasive naturalized plants in south-east Queensland. Appendix. Plant Protection Quarterly 17, 27-34. 11 pp.

Smith, Albert C. 1991. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 5. 626 pp.

Swarbrick, J. T. 1997. Environmental weeds and exotic plants on Christmas Island, Indian Ocean: a report to Parks Australia. 101 pp. plus appendix.

Swarbrick, John T. 1997. Weeds of the Pacific Islands. Technical paper no. 209. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 124 pp.

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

Waterhouse, D. F. 1993. The major arthropod pests and weeds of agriculture in Southeast Asia. The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, Canberra. 141 pp.

Wu, Te-lin. 2001. Check List of Hong Kong Plants. Hong Kong Herbarium and the South China Institute of Botany. Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department Bulletin 1 (revised). 384 pp.