Enterolobium cyclocarpum (Jacq.) G.Don, Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Low risk (based on second screen), score: 3 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

English: devil's ear, earpod tree, elephant's ear, monkeysoap

French: bois tanniste rouge, oreille á mulâtre, oreille cafre, oreille d'éléphant

Spanish: árbol de las orejas, carita, corotú, guanacaste, parota

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Large-trunked tree < 25 m with widely spreading branches. Petioles 2-6 cm, usually with sessile gland below the middle; pinnae 4-15 pairs, leaflets 20-30 pairs, linear-oblong, 8-15 mm, apex acute, paler beneath. Inflorescence axillary, peduncle 1.5-4 cm, heads many-flowered; calyx puberulent, 2.5 mm; corolla tube glabrate to puberulent, < 5 mm, teeth ciliate; staminal tube include, filaments white. Legume compressed, 3-4 cm wide, curved into a nearly complete circle 8-10 cm diameter, shiny; seeds ellipsoidal, flat, with conspicuous pleurogram" (Howard, 1988; p. 357).

Habitat/ecology:  "Moist but well-drained soils in sunny places are preferred" (Whistler, 2000; p. 189).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Mexico to Venezuela.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Fiji Fiji Islands	Fiji Islands	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawaiian Islands	introduced cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 630) May be adventive.
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 78) Vouchers cited: MacKee 42607, MacKee 42811
Papua New Guinea Bismarck Archipelago	Bismarck Archipelago		ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007) Possibly native.
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
El Salvador El Salvador	El Salvador (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Nicaragua Nicaragua	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
British Indian Ocean Territory Chagos Archipelago	Diego Garcia Island	introduced cultivated	Topp, J. M. W. (1988) (p. 6)
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced cultivated	Lavergne, Christophe (2006) "Cultivé"

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)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2005)

Comments:  Reported as an invasive plant in the West Indies per GRIN; cultivated in Hawai‘i.

Additional information:  Information from the World Agroforestry Centre's AgroForestryTree Database.

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

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

References:

Howard, Richard A. 1988. Flora of the Lesser Antilles: Leeward and Windward Islands. Vol. 4, Dicotyledoneae-Part 1. Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University. 673 pp.

ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre. 2005. International Legume Database & Information Service. Online searchable database.

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

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

Topp, J. M. W. 1988. An annotated check list of the flora of Diego Garcia, British Ocean Territory. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 313. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 21 pp.

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.