Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Scirpus fuirena T. Koyama

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: fu lan cao

English: yefen

French: fuirena à ombelle

Palauan: desum ra mesei

Pohnpeian: madeu

Habit:  sedge

Description:  "Perennial herb, wholly light green. Culms solitary, erect from horizontally creeping rhizome, 50-100 cm tall, 6-9 mm thick below, 5-angular, several-nodose, glabrous except below inflorescence. Basal leaves reduced to subaphyllous sheaths; bladed leaves 5-7 to a culm, spaced on middle and upper part of the culm; blades lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 10-20 cm long, 5-15 mm wide, 5-costate, glabrous, briefly acute at apex, suddenly contracted at base, the sheaths 2-5 cm long, tightly surrounding the culm. Inflorescence paniculiform, with 3-12 glomerulous clusters of spikelets; glomerules single or binate, 15-20 mm across, bearing 5-10 spikelets, the peduncles white-villose, single or binate, occasionally branched; bracts leaf-like, longer than partial inflorescence. Spikelets ovoid or ovoid-ellipsoid, 4-7 mm long, brownish-green or dark brownish-green at maturity, acute, wholly covered with wooly hairs. Glumes elliptic, 2 mm long, ciliate and sparsely pilose outside, the midvein ending in a short recurved awn ca. 1 mm long. Achenes broadly obovate, 0.8 mm long, subobtusely triquetrous with obscurely wrinkled sides, the cuneate base with a thickish stipe; style 3-fid. Hypogynous bristles absent. Hypogynous squamellae 3, obovate or oblong, membranous, short-stipitate at base, slightly surpassing the achene" (Howard, 1979; p. 223).

Habitat/ecology:  In Sri Lanka, "open wet or swampy places at altitudes of 0 to 1800 m" (Dassanayake, 1983; pp. 148-149).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Pantropical (Howard, 1979; p. 223). Fosberg et al. (1987, p. 74) list as native in Micronesia.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (US) Northern Mariana Islands	Rota Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (US) Northern Mariana Islands	Saipan Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Federated States of Micronesia Chuuk Islands	Chuuk Islands	native	Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 92)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island		Glassman, S. F. (1952) (p. 123) Vouchers cited: Glassman 2841 (US), Kanehira 681 (BISH)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	native	Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. (2010) (p. 43) Vouchers cited: E. Albert 34 NY), S. Perlman 21524 (PTBG)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island		National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (2002) (voucher ID: PTBG 41886) Taxon name on voucher: Fuirena umbellata Rottb.
Federated States of Micronesia Yap Islands	Woleai Atoll	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Federated States of Micronesia Yap Islands	Yap (Waqab) Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	native	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 177)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island	native	Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie (2009) (p. Field notes and voucher.) Voucher: Lorence 9922 (PTBG, BNM, BISH, NY, US)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island		National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (2008) (voucher ID: PTBG 215) Taxon name on voucher: Fuirena umbellata Rottb.
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island		National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (1998) (voucher ID: PTBG 25475) Taxon name on voucher: Fuirena umbellata Rottb.
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	native	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 74)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island		Beleu National Museum (Republic of Palau. Koror.) (1970) (voucher ID: BNM 108) Taxon name on voucher: Fuirena umbellata Rottb.
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island		Beleu National Museum (Republic of Palau. Koror.) (1977) (voucher ID: BNM 10076) Taxon name on voucher: Fuirena umbellata Rottb.
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	Merrill, Elmer D. (1925) (p. 116) In open wet lands at low and medium altitudes.
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	native	Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 77)

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)		Hafliger, E. (1092) (p. 45)
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
China China	Hong Kong	native	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 316) On moist grassland, near river or in paddy fields.
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Honduras Honduras	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Nicaragua Nicaragua	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

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

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

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

References:

Beleu National Museum (Republic of Palau. Koror.). 1970. Voucher specimen #BNM108(Salsedo, Carl A. 311).

Beleu National Museum (Republic of Palau. Koror.). 1977. Voucher specimen #BNM10076(Otobed, D.O. PW-10076).

Dassanayake, M. D., gen. ed. 1983. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon. Vol V. Amerind Pub. Co., New Delhi. 476 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1987. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian monocotyledonae. Micronesica 20:1-126.

Glassman, S. F. 1952. The flora of Ponape. Bishop Mus. Bull. 209: 1-152.

Hafliger, E. 1092. Monocot Weeds 3. CIBA-GEIGY Ltd., Basle, Switzerland. 132 pp. plus plates.

Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. 1988. Flora of the Solomon Islands. Research Bulletin No. 7. Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Honiara. 203 pp.

Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. 2010. Checklist of the vascular plants of Pohnpei with local names and uses. Allertonia, in press. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 146 pp.

Howard, Richard A. 1979. Flora of the Lesser Antilles: Leeward and Windward Islands. Vol. 3, Monocotyledoneae. Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University. 586 pp.

Merrill, Elmer D. 1925. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, vol. 1 [reprint]. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 463 pp.

National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.). 2002. Voucher specimen #PTBG41886(E. Albert 34).

National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.). 2008. Voucher specimen #PTBG215(David H. Lorence 9922).

Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie. 2009. Report to the Republic of Palau: 2008 update on Invasive Plant Species. USDA Forest Service, Hilo, Hawai‘i. 227 pp.

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

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.

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.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).