Ipomoea nil (L.) Roth, Convolvulaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Convolvulus nil L.; Pharbitis limbata Lindl.; Pharbitis nil (L.) Choisy

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: qian niu

English: Japanese morning-glory, blue morning glory, ivy morning-glory, white-edge morning-glory

French: liseron bleu, liseron hallier

Habit:  vine

Description:  "Annual or sometimes short-lived perennial, with twining to decumbent-creeping, slender, somewhat angular stems 2-5 m long; herbage sparsely to moderately hirsute with tawny, simple hairs 1-4 mm long, hairs spreading to slightly retrorse; leaf blades suborbicular, entire to narrowly and shallowly to moderately 3-lobed, 3-18 cm long, 3-20 cm wide, cordate with narrow sinus, acute to short-acuminate at apex and tips of lateral lobes, auricles rounded and entire, dark green, sparsely subappressed-hirsute on upper surface, much paler and more densely hirsute beneath; inflorescence cymose on peduncles 1-15 cm long, retrorsely hirsute; bracts linear to lanceolate, 5-11 mm long; flowers 1 to several on each peduncle; sepals linear, 15-30 mm long, nearly equal, bases ovate, 2.5-3 mm wide, gradually narrowing into linear terminal blade, densely hirsute; corolla funnelform, 2.5-6 cm long, pale blue to deep blue, throat and tube gradually ampliate, paler than limb, this 3-5 cm across, glabrous without; stamens subequal, the shorter 12-40 mm long, the longer 15-45 mm long, conspicuously glandular-hirsute toward base; style 15-30 mm long, slender; stigma shallowly bilobed, granular; capsules ovoid to depressed-subglobose, 7-8 mm high, 8-12 mm thick, 3-6-seeded; seeds 4.5-6 mm long, black or brown, sparsely to densely grayish-puberulent, or sometimes nearly glabrous"  (Wiggins & Porter, 1971; pp. 378-379).

Habitat/ecology:  "A pantropical species" (Wiggins & Porter, 1971; pp. 378-379). Arid lowlands in the Galápagos Islands (McMullen, 1999; p. 316).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Mexico to Argentina; cultivated and naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Floreana Group	Floreana Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Isabela Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Volcán Alcedo, Isabela Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Pinta Group	Pinta Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santiago Group	Albany Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santiago Group	Mao Islet, Santiago Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santiago Group	Santiago Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 41) Vouchers cited: MacKee 21044, MacKee 43978 Spontané
New Guinea (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea) New Guinea Island	New Guinea Island	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized

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	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Western Australia Naturalized
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Pancho, Juan V./Herberger, James P./Plucknett, Donald L. (1979) (p. 195)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013) Thickets on mountain slopes, waysides, fields, hedges; 0-1600 m. Cultivated or escaped.
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 187)
Japan Ryukyu Islands	Ryukyu Islands	introduced	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Colombia	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Taiwan Taiwan Island	Taiwan Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013) Thickets on mountain slopes, waysides, fields, hedges; 0-1600 m. Cultivated or escaped.
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	introduced	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	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
Australia (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Christmas Island Group	Christmas Island	introduced invasive	Swarbrick, J. T. (1997) (p. 116)
French Territory of Mayotte Mayotte Islands	Mayotte Island	introduced	Comité français de l'Union Internationale pour la Conservation de la Nature en France (2013) Naturalisée, potentiellement envahissant.
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Seychelles Islands	introduced	Invasive Species Specialist Group (2017)

Control:  If you know of control methods for Ipomoea nil, please let us know.