Emilia coccinea (Sims) G.Don, Asteraceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Cacalia coccinea Sims; Emilia sagittata (Willd.) DC.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: rong ying ju

English: Cupid's-paintbrush, Flora's paintbrush, red thistle, tasselflower

French: émilie, cucolie écarlate

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Herbs, annual. Stems erect, 40-70 (-100) cm tall, glabrous or hispidulous. Basal and lower leaves shortly petiolate; blade oblong, obovate, or subspatulate, 5-7 x 2-2.5 cm, both surfaces puberulent, veins convex abaxially and conspicuously concave adaxially, base gradually attenuate, winged and semiamplexicaul, margin entire or repand-denticulate, apex obtuse. Median stem leaves sessile, oblong or ovate-oblong, large, basally hastate and amplexicaul. Upper leaves smaller, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, basally auriculate and amplexicaul, apically acute. Capitula several in terminal corymb, 10-15 mm; peduncles 10-30 mm, not bracteate. Involucres urceolate or top-shaped, 10-12 x 9-12 mm, without bracts at base; phyllaries distinctly shorter than florets, 10-13, linear-lanceolate, glabrous, margin narrowly scarious, apically acuminate. Florets numerous, ca. 50; corolla scarlet, rarely yellow, tube slender; lobes 5, lanceolate, 1.6-2.2 mm. Achenes cylindric, ca. 3 mm, puberulent, 5-ribbed. Pappus white, ca. 4 mm"  (Flora of China online).

"Plants 2-10 dm tall, unbranched or sparingly branched, somewhat arachnoid-villous below, otherwise glabrous or nearly so.  Leaves variable in shape and size, narrowly elliptic to obovate or oblong-lanceolate, usually 4-15 cm long, 1-7 cm wide, margins subentire to dentate.  Heads urn-shaped to turbinate, nearly as long as wide, ca. " as long as corolla, bracts 10-13, usually 6-9 mm long; florets usually more than 50 per head, conspicuously longer than the involucre by usually 2-5 mm, corollas bright orange, the lobes 1.6-2.2 mm long"  (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 312).

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "sparingly naturalized in low elevation, dry disturbed habitats" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 312).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Africa and perhaps Madagascar (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 312).

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	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive	Imada, Clyde T./Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2000) (p. 10) Voucher cited: C. Imada, W. Char & C. Morden 99-11 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Lāna‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 312)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 312) Voucher cited: Heller 2296
New Caledonia New Caledonia	New Caledonia Islands		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 92)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Costa Rica (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	El Salvador (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 190) As Emilia sagittata (Willd.) DC.
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Colombia	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized

Control:  If you know of control methods for Emilia coccinea, please let us know.