Rivina humilis L., Phytolaccaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Rivina laevis L.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: baby pepper, bloodberry, coral berry, pigeonberry, rouge plant

French: petite groseille

Spanish: coralito

Tongan: polo

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Plants 4-10 dm tall, rarely taller.  Leaves usually widely spaced, 4-12 cm long, 1.5-4 cm wide, both surfaces glabrous or puberulent especially along veins, petioles 1-3.5 cm long, usually puberulent along upper surface.  Racemes 7-15 cm long, pedicels 2-3 mm long in anthesis, elongating up to ca. 4 mm long and recurved in fruit, bract ca. 1-2 mm long, more or less caducous, bracteoles ca. 0.2-0.3 mm long; sepals white or pink, oblong, ca. 2-3 mm long.  Fruit orange, red or purple, subglobose, ca. 4 mm in diameter.  Seed ca. 2.5-3.5 mm in diameter, puberulent"  (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1016-1017, 1887).

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "naturalized in dry to mesic, shaded, disturbed areas, 10-130 m" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1016-1017).  Shade tolerant (Motooka et al., 2003).  In Fiji, "occurring near sea level along roadsides, in fields, pastures, gardens, etc., sometimes locally frequent in shady places" (Smith, 1981; pp. 261-262). In Tonga, "a weedy plant of waste areas" (Yuncker, 1959; pp. 110-111). In New Caledonia, "cette espèce est souvent commune et complètement intégrée à la végétation naturelle, surtout près du littoral" (MacKee, 1994; p. 114). In Australia, "it usually grows along the edges of rainforest in clearings or other shaded places on the coastal belt" (Kleinschmidt & Johnson, 1987, cited in Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; p. 194).

Propagation:  Seed, spread by birds.

Native range:  Tropical America, now widely naturalized in Indo-Malesia and the Pacific (Smith, 1981; pp. 261-262).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 10) "naturalised in one or two localities". Vouchers cited: W.R. Sykes NI 217 (CHR), P.S. Green 1453 (A), R.D. Hoogland 11143 (CANB)
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) Isabela Group	Volcán Sierra Negra, Isabela 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	Santiago Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1981) (pp. 261-262) Vouchers cited: Greenwood 823A, DA 10275, DA 11416, Greenwood 823, DA 9780, DA 10666, DA 12169
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1958) (voucher ID: BISH 33795) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
French Polynesia Gambier Islands	Mangareva (Gambier) Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J. (2004) (pp. 326-327)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Hiva Oa Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J. (2004) (pp. 326-327)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 213) Vouchers cited: BRY 25959, Florence 2775
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J. (2004) (pp. 326-327)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1982) (voucher ID: BISH 492173) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1016-1017)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1016-1017)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Meidell, J. Scott/Oppenheimer, H. L./Bartlett, R. T. (1997) (p. 17) West Maui. Voucher cited: Meidell & Oppenheimer 112 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Oppenheimer, Hank (2007) (p. 28) East Maui. Voucher cited: Oppenheimer H50608 (BISH, PTBG)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Moloka‘i Island	introduced invasive	Oppenheimer, Hank L. (2003) (p. 18) Voucher cited: Oppenheimer H110135 (BISH, PTBG)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1016-1017)
Japan (offshore islands) Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	introduced invasive	Toyoda, Takeshi (2003) (p. 286) Naturalized
Japan (offshore islands) Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	introduced	Kato, Hidetoshi (2007)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Lifou	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Vouchers cited: Däniker 2421, Veillon 4160 (NOU)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Îles Ouvéa (Ouvea Atoll)	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Voucher cited: Sarasin 884
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Tiga	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Voucher cited: MacKee 45876
New Caledonia New Caledonia	New Caledonia Islands	introduced invasive	Gargominy, Oliver/Bouchet, Philipe/Pascal, Michel/Jaffre, Tanguy/Tourneu, Jean-Christophe (1996) (p. 382) Souvent commune et complètement intégrée à la végétation naturelle, surtout près du littoral.
New Caledonia New Caledonia	New Caledonia Islands		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1947) (voucher ID: BISH 168961) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Améré	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Voucher cited: MacKee 37529
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Vouchers cited: Cribs 754, MacKee 1993, Denizot s.n., MacKee 21850, MacKee 22798, Azais in MacKee 34870, Boulet in MacKee 37463
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1982) (voucher ID: BISH 596101) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île des Pins (Isle of Pines)	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 114) Vouchers cited: Pancher 636, Corbasson in MacKee 19462
Tonga Ha‘apai Group	Nomuka Island	introduced invasive	Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (pp. 110-111) Voucher cited: Yuncker 15845
Tonga Ha‘apai Group	Nomuka Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1953) (voucher ID: BISH 168962) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tonga Islands	Tonga Islands	introduced invasive	Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (pp. 110-111) "Probably on all of the islands".
Tonga Tongatapu Group	‘Eua Island	introduced invasive	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 62)
Tonga Tongatapu Group	‘Eua Island	introduced invasive	Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (pp. 110-111) Cited: Lister.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	‘Eua Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1990) (voucher ID: BISH 600267) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Fafa Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1959) (voucher ID: BISH 41322) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island	introduced invasive	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 56)
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island	introduced invasive	Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (pp. 110-111) Voucher cited: Yuncker 15093
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1958) (voucher ID: BISH 41178) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1958) (voucher ID: BISH 41192) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1953) (voucher ID: BISH 168963) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Velitoa Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1959) (voucher ID: BISH 77948) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Velitoa Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1959) (voucher ID: BISH 77952) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Tuvalu Tuvalu (Ellis) Islands	Tuvalu Islands		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 96)
Vanuatu New Hebrides Islands	Aneityum Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1886) (voucher ID: BISH 523783) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Vanuatu New Hebrides Islands	Êfaté (Efete) Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1971) (voucher ID: BISH 406170) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Vanuatu New Hebrides Islands	Malakula (Malekula) Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1988) (voucher ID: BISH 628515) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Vanuatu New Hebrides Islands	Tanna Island		Bishop Museum (Honolulu) (1977) (voucher ID: BISH 415778) Taxon name on voucher: Rivina humilis L.
Vanuatu New Hebrides Islands	Vanuatu (Republic of)		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 96)

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)	New South Wales	introduced invasive	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 194)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 194)
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Ecuador (Mainland) Ecuador	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
El Salvador El Salvador	El Salvador (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Honduras Honduras	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Nicaragua Nicaragua	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)

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) Cocos (Keeling) Islands	Cocos (Keeling) Islands	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1993) (pp. 37, 39) On both main atoll and North Keeling Island.
British Indian Ocean Territory Chagos Archipelago	Diego Garcia Island		Stoddart, D. R./Taylor, J. D., eds. (1971) (p. 150) Vouchers cited: Stoddart 769 (K, US), Stoddart 766 (K), Stoddart 877 (K, US), Stoddart 848 (K, US), Rhyne 775 (US)
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced invasive	Lavergne, Christophe (2006) "Naturalisé/±envahissant"
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Agalega Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Stoddart, D. R. (1983) (p. 131) Voucher cited: Stoddart 7238b (US)

Control: 

Chemical: "Sensitive to MCPA and triclopyr but re-treatment probably needed"  (Motooka et al., 2003).

Additional information:
Information from the book "Weeds of Hawaii‘s Pastures and Natural Areas; An Identification and Management Guide" (Motooka et al., 2003). (PDF format).
Fact sheet from the Government of Queensland, Australia (PDF format).

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

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

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

Other Latin names:  Rivina laevis L.

References:

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1886. Voucher specimen #BISH 523783 (Krauss, N.L.H. 2008).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1947. Voucher specimen #BISH 168961 (Buchholz, J.T. 1419).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1953. Voucher specimen #BISH 168962 (Yuncker, T.G. 15845).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1953. Voucher specimen #BISH 168963 (Yuncker, T.G. 15093).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1958. Voucher specimen #BISH 33795 (Parham, J.W. 11416).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1958. Voucher specimen #BISH 41178 (Lawrence, E. 141).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1958. Voucher specimen #BISH 41192 (Soakai, E. 202).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1959. Voucher specimen #BISH 41322 (Soakai, E. 446).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1959. Voucher specimen #BISH 77948 (Soakai, E. 743).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1959. Voucher specimen #BISH 77952 (Soakai, E. 746).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1971. Voucher specimen #BISH 406170 (collector unknown 1003).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1977. Voucher specimen #BISH 415778 (Krauss, N.L.H. 1458).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1982. Voucher specimen #BISH 492173 (Florence, J. 2775).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1982. Voucher specimen #BISH 596101 (McPherson, G. 4795).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1988. Voucher specimen #BISH 628515 (D.Mueller-Dombois 88111202).

Bishop Museum (Honolulu). 1990. Voucher specimen #BISH 600267 (Whistler, W.A. 7107).

Charles Darwin Foundation. 2008. Database inventory of introduced plant species in the rural and urban zones of Galapagos. Charles Darwin Foundation, Galapagos, Ecuador.

Charles Darwin Research Station. 2005. CDRS Herbarium records.

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

Florence, J. 2004. Flore de la Polynésie française, Vol. 2. Paris. IRE Editions, Publications Scientifiques, Collection Faune et Flore Tropicales 41. 503 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Stoddart, D. R. 1983. List of the recorded vascular flora of Agalega. In: Sachet, M. H., D. R. Stoddart, and F. R. Fosberg. Floristics and ecology of Western Indian Ocean islands. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 273. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 253 pp.

Gargominy, Oliver/Bouchet, Philipe/Pascal, Michel/Jaffre, Tanguy/Tourneu, Jean-Christophe. 1996. Conséquences des introductions d'espèces animales et végétales sur la biodiversité en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Rev. Ecol. (Terre Vie) 51:375-401.

Kato, Hidetoshi. 2007. Herbarium records of Makino Herbarium, Tokyo Metropolitan University. Personal communication.

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.

Meidell, J. Scott/Oppenheimer, H. L./Bartlett, R. T. 1997. New plant records from Pu‘u Kukui watershed and adjacent areas, Maui. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Miller, Scott, E., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 1996. Part 2: Notes. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 49:17-18.

Motooka, Philip/Castro, Luisa/Nelson, Duane/Nagai, Guy/Ching, Lincoln. 2003. Weeds of Hawaii‘s Pastures and Natural Areas; An Identification and Management Guide. College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii at Manoa. 184 pp.

Oppenheimer, Hank. 2007. New plant records from Moloka‘i, Lāna‘i, Maui, and Hawai‘i for 2006. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucias G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 2006. Part 2: Notes. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 96:17-34.

Oppenheimer, Hank L. 2003. New plant records from Maui and Hawai‘i Counties. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucius G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 2001-2002. Part 1: Articles. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 73:3-30.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1993. Flora of Australia. Vol. 50, Oceanic islands 2. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1994. Flora of Australia. Vol. 49, Oceanic islands 1. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Smith, Albert C. 1981. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 2. 810 pp.

Space, James C./Flynn, Tim. 2001. Report to the Kingdom of Tonga on invasive plant species of environmental concern.  USDA Forest Service, Honolulu. 78 pp.

Stoddart, D. R./Taylor, J. D., eds. 1971. Geography and ecology of Diego Garcia Atoll, Chagos Archipelago. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 149. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 237 pp.

Swarbrick, John T. 1997. Weeds of the Pacific Islands. Technical paper no. 209. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 124 pp.

Toyoda, Takeshi. 2003. Flora of the Bonin Islands. Aboc & Co. 522 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2009. 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).

Welsh, S. L. 1998. Flora Societensis: A summary revision of the flowering plants of the Society Islands. E.P.S. Inc., Orem, Utah. 420 pp.

Whistler, W. A. 1988. Checklist of the weed flora of western Polynesia. Technical Paper No. 194, South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 69 pp.

Wiggins, I. L./Porter, D. M. 1971. Flora of the Galapágos Islands. Stanford University Press. 998 pp.

Yuncker, T. G. 1959. Plants of Tonga. Bishop Museum Bull. 220. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 343 pp.