Fuchsia magellanica Lam., Onagraceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  yes

Common name(s): [more details]

English: earring flower, hardy fuchsia

French: fuchsia de magellan, ti zanneau

Hawaiian: kulapepeiao

Spanish: chilca, chilco, palo blanco

Habit:  shrub

Description:  "Small shrubs;  stems long, arcuate, 1-2.5 (-4) m long.  Leaves in whorls of 3-4 per node or sometimes opposite, ovate to lanceolate, 2.5-6 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, margins serrate, petioles 0.5-1 cm long.  Flowers perfect, axillary and pendent, peduncles 3-4.5 cm long; floral tube magenta, 10-13 mm long; sepals magenta, 20-25 mm long; petals dark purple, convolute after anthesis, 10-13 mm long; stamens exserted; filaments 25-30 mm long.  Berries ellipsoid, 10-15 mm long"  (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 996-997).

Habitat/ecology:  Ornamental plant; many cultivated fuchsias are hybrids of Fuchsia magellanica.  "Forest margins, scrub, woodland, riparian habitats.  A variable shrub with a number of varieties and cultivars.  It often forms dense thickets and scrambles over other shrubs and small trees.  Extensive stands develop in disturbed sites, impeding the growth and regeneration of native trees and shrubs"  (Weber, 2003; p. 176).

"Dense infestations in the La Reunion islands occur along paths and tracks, where the plant may form dense tangled thickets which shade out native understorey plants and alter the structure of the vegetation" (Csurhes and Edwards, 1998; p. 161).  Naturalized in mesic to wet forests up to 5000 ft. elevation in Hawai‘i.  "In Chile this species grows in the following environmental conditions:  Medium altitude up to the timber line; low altitude, interior valleys; coastal mountains, 500-2000 m; coastal areas, 0-500 m.  The plant grows in water or it has its roots within a permanent water course, this corresponds to marshes, bogs, water courses, lake and river shores; humid areas, with almost constant rainfall, short dry periods are possible (generally not longer than 1 month).  Some shadow, some protection against direct sunlight, some shadow from vegetation, filtering about 20-40% of light; in shadow, steep slopes facing south or a vegetation cover which filters 40-80% of light"  (Chileflora).

Propagation:  "Seeds are dispersed by birds and water"  (Weber, 2003; p. 176).

Native range:  Southern South America.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive cultivated	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced cultivated	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 554)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 996-997) Voucher cited: Rock 13045 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 996-997)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 996-997)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced	Wester, Lyndon (1992) (p. 144)

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)	Australia (continental)	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 161) South Australia
Chile (continental) Chile	Chile (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 905) "Scrub, plantations, roadsides, forest margins".

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 161)
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)
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Lavergne, Christophe (2006) "Très envahissant"
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Kueffer, C./Lavergne, C. (2004) (p. 4)
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Baret, Stephane/Rouget, Mathieu/Richardson, David M./Lavergne, Christophe/Egoh, Benis/Dupont, Joel/Strasberg, Dominique (2006) (p. 758)

Control: 

Physical:  Hand pull or dig out seedlings and young trees.

Chemical:  Cut plants and treat regrowth with a herbicide; larger plants can be cut and the stumps treated with herbicide (Weber, 2003; p. 176).

Additional information:
Photos and other information from Chileflora.

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

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

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

References:

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

Baret, Stephane/Rouget, Mathieu/Richardson, David M./Lavergne, Christophe/Egoh, Benis/Dupont, Joel/Strasberg, Dominique. 2006. Current distribution and potential extent of the most invasive alien plant species on La Réunion (Indian Ocean, Mascarene islands). Austral Ecology (2006) 31, 747-758.

Belov, Michail. 2011. Chileflora (online resource).

Comité français de l'Union Internationale pour la Conservation de la Nature en France. 2010. Les espéces envahissantes en outre-mer (online resource).

Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. 1998. Potential environmental weeds in Australia: Candidate species for preventative control. Canberra, Australia. Biodiversity Group, Environment Australia. 208 pp.

Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido. 2006. Nouveau catalogue de la flore vaculaire de l'archipel Juan Fernández (Chile) [Nuevo catálogo de la flora vacular del Archipélago Juan Fernández (Chile)]. Acta Bot. Gallica 153(4):399-587.

Kueffer, C./Lavergne, C. 2004. Case studies on the status of invasive woody plant species in the western Indian Ocean. 4. R233;union. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Forestry Department, Forest Resources Division, Forest Resources Development Service, Working Paper FBS/4-4E. 37 pp.

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

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.

Tassin, J. 1999. Plant invaders in Réunion Island (French Overseas Territory, Indian Ocean). Aliens 9:10.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. 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).

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Weber, Ewald. 2003. Invasive plants of the World. CABI Publishing, CAB International, Wallingford, UK. 548 pp.

Wester, Lyndon. 1992. Origin and distribution of adventive flowering plants in Hawai‘i. In: Stone, Charles P.; Smith, Clifford W. and Tunison, J. Timothy. Alien plant invasions in native ecosystems of Hawaii: Management and Research. University of Hawaii, Cooperative National Park Research Studies Unit, Honolulu. University of Hawaii Press. .