Paederia foetida L., Rubiaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results: 

High risk, score: 21 (Go to the risk assessment (Pacific))
Reject, score: 19 (Go to the risk assessment (U.S. (Florida)))

Other Latin names:  Paederia scandens (Lour.) Merr.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: ji shi teng

English: lesser Malayan stinkwort, skunk vine, stink vine

French: liane lingue

Hawaiian: maile kā kahiki, maile pilau

Habit:  vine

Description:  "Twining, malodorous vines; stems to 2-7 m long, puberulent in lines or sometimes glabrous.  Leaves opposite, oblong-lanceolate to ovate, 4.5-14 cm long, 2-5 cm wide, glabrous except lower surface with tufts of hairs in axils of primary veins, margins entire, ciliate when young, becoming glabrate, apex acuminate or acute, base cuneate to rounded or subcordate, petioles 2-5 cm long, stipules ca. 1.5-1.7 mm long, short-acuminate, short-fimbriate-ciliate to ciliate.  Flowers in cymes 2-12 cm long, sometimes several grouped together " with subtending leaves and forming panicles up to 30 cm long; hypanthium ca. 1.5 mm long; calyx lobes deltate, ca. 0.4-0.5 mm long; corolla white to pale yellow with a dark rose purple center, the tube ca. 7-11 mm long, densely floccose externally, purplish within with long, clavate, purple hairs, the lobes scarcely spreading, margins crisped-undulate; stamens inserted at different levels, included.  Fruit yellowish brown to red, glossy, subglobose, 4-6 mm in diameter"  (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1160, 1891).

Habitat/ecology:  "Waste places and cultivated land; secondary forest; at low altitudes.  A serious weed of young sugarcane.  Scrambles over trees and bushes."  (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 85-86).  "Forests and forest edges, woodland, tropical hammocks.  This highly variable and fast growing species grows naturally in openings of wet evergreen to dry deciduous forests and woodland.  The plant has both climbing and creeping stems, the latter root at the nodes.  The species forms dense curtains of intermingled stems, covering the floor, smothering all vegetation and altering the community structure.  Trees may be killed by the weight of vines.  The plant colonizes rapidly tree-fall gaps and persists once established, preventing natural forest regeneration"  (Weber, 2003; p. 296).

In Hawai‘i, "naturalized and often locally common in disturbed mesic forest, coastal sites, dry forest and subalpine woodland, sea level to 1,830 m" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 1160); "smothers trees and smaller vegetation"  (Motooka et al., 2003).  In New Caledonia, "cette espèce qui fleurit rarement est plantée dans quelques jardins; elle s'échappe parfois et couvre densément des arbustes en terrains vagues" (MacKee, 1994; p. 123).

Propagation:  "Seeds probably dispersed by birds and animals.  Vegetative propagation from rhizomes."  (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 85-86).

Native range:  India to Malaysia

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Voucher cited: J. Florence 9133 (PAP) Cultivée
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1160)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1160)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Starr, Forest/Martz, Kim/Loope, Lloyd L. (1999) (p. 14) East Maui. Voucher cited: Starr & Martz 980807-12 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Oppenheimer, Hank L. (2003) (p. 23) West Maui. Voucher cited: Oppenheimer H100045 (BISH, PTBG)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1160)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 123) Vouchers cited: Botton in Veillon 1125 (NOU), MacKee 23610 Spontané
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	uncertain if native	Waterhouse, B. M./Mitchell, A. A. (1998) (pp. 85-86)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		Merrill, Elmer D. (1923) (p. 570) In thickets at low and medium altitudes, ascending to 1,500 m.

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
China China	Hong Kong	native	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 269) As Paederia scandens (Lour.) Merr. In thickets. Also var. tomentosa (Blume) Hand.-Mazz.
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Japan Japan	Japan	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Japan Ryukyu Islands	Ryukyu Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
South Korea South Korea	South Korea (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	native	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 65) Common
Taiwan Taiwan Island	Taiwan Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)

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 cultivated	Swarbrick, J. T. (1997) (p. 122) Possibly naturalized.
India (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Andaman Islands	Andaman Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
India (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Nicobar Islands	Nicobar Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island		Waterhouse, B. M./Mitchell, A. A. (1998) (pp. 85-86)

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	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)

Comments:  An aggressive weed species on Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) and Mauritius.

Planting of this species is prohibited in Miami-Dade County, Florida (U.S.) (Miami-Dade County Dept. of Planning and Zoning, 2010).

Control: 

Chemical:  "Difficult where maile pilau climbs over desirable plants. Sensitive to triclopyr and perhaps to other hormone-type herbicides. If non-targets are to be saved, only ground covering parts can be treated. Large stumps will probably require follow-up treatment, e.g. stump bark applications.  May be controlled with directed applications of foliage to avoid supporting vegetation, though some non-target damage is likely.   May be controlled with basal bark applications with 20% triclopyr ester product in oil, taking care to only treat vines and not contact supporting vegetation"  (Motooka et al., 2003).

Biological:  Biological control information from the publication "Biological control of invasive plants in the eastern United States".