Cordia sebestena L., Boraginaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Threat only at high elevations?  no

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

Common name(s): [more details]

English: geigertree, large-leaf geigertree

French: bois râpe

Spanish: anacahuita, anaconda, siricote blanco

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Tree or shrub 1-7 m high...; petioles 1-4 cm long; leaf blades ovate to elliptic, 9-16 x 5-14 cm, obtuse to subcordate at base, with scattered appressed stiff hairs above; calyx strigose and densely brown-puberulent, 12-15 mm long, expanding to 3-4 cm long and enclosing fruit; corolla orange or scarlet, hypocrateriform, 3-4 cm long and in apical diameter, the tube twice as long as the calyx; fruit ovoid, white, 1-2.5 cm long or larger, tightly invested by calyx tube" (Smith, 1991; p. 153).

Habitat/ecology:  "Moist but well-drained soils in sunny to partially shaded places are preferred, but it is adaptable to dry, even somwhat saline soils" (Whistler, 2000; p. 147).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  "West Indies and probably also along the coasts of Venezuela, Colombia, and Central America, frequently cultivated elsewhere in tropical areas" (Smith, 1991; p. 153).

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	‘Atiu Island	introduced cultivated	McCormack, Gerald (2007)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 229)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Vanua Levu Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1991) (p. 153) Voucher cited: DA 8948
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced cultivated	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 498)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 229)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawaiian Islands	introduced cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 392)
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 229)
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced	Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. (1999) (p. 99) Not seen on this survey.
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 229)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Honduras Honduras	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)

Comments:  Reported as possibly an invasive plant in the Hawaiian Islands per Staples et al., 2000.

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

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

References:

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1979. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian dicotyledonae. Micronesica 15:1-295.

McCormack, Gerald. 2007. Cook Islands biodiversity and natural heritage. On-line database.

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

Stone, Benjamin C. 1970. The flora of Guam. Micronesica 6:1-659.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).

Whistler, W. A. 2000. Tropical ornamentals: a guide. Timber Press, Portland, Oregon. 542 pp.

Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. 1999. Botanical survey of the United States of America Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Islands. Prepared for Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education and the U. S. Army Environmental Center. 111 pp.