Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

English: Chilean pearlwort

Habit:  herb

Description: 

Genus:  "Herbs, annual, winter-annual, or perennial, often cespitose or matted. Taproots slender. Stems ascending, decumbent, or procumbent, simple or branched, terete to slightly angular. Leaves: basal and secondary rosettes present in perennial species, usually connate proximally, sometimes forming conspicuous, scarious cup, sessile, with or without axillary fascicles of leaves; blade 1-veined, linear to subulate, succulent or not, apex acute to mucronate or apiculate (or long-aristate in S. subulata). Inflorescences terminal or axillary cymes, or flowers solitary; bracts paired, foliaceous. Pedicels erect or spreading. Flowers: perianth and androecium hypogynous; sepals 4 or 5, distinct, green or sometimes purple (in S. nivalis and S. decumbens), lanceolate to elliptic or orbiculate, 1-5.5 mm, herbaceous, margins white or purple, scarious, apex obtuse or rounded to somewhat acute, frequently hood-shaped in bud; petals 4 or 5, sometimes absent (frequently absent or soon dropping in annual species), white, claw absent or minute, blade apex entire; nectaries at base of filaments opposite sepals; stamens 4, 5, 8, or 10, arising from base of ovary; filaments distinct; staminodes absent; styles 4 or 5, clavate to filiform, 0.5-1.5 mm, glabrous proximally; stigmas 4 or 5, subterminal to linear along adaxial surface of styles, minutely papillate (30x). Capsules globose to ovoid, opening by 4 or 5 valves, sutures running to base, but in some species dehiscing only ca. 1/ 1/ 2 capsule length; carpophore absent. Seeds ca. 125, light tan to dark or reddish brown, obliquely triangular with abaxial groove, or reniform to nearly globose without abaxial groove (except S. nodosa, which is intermediate), laterally compressed or plump, smooth to tuberculate, marginal wing absent, appendage absent"  (Flora of North America online).

Species:  (description info not known by PIER)

Habitat/ecology:  (no habitat/ecology info known by PIER)

Propagation:  Seed?

Native range:  Argentina, Chile and Uruguay; naturalized in Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul) (GRIN).

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	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (pp. 460, 463, 557) Vouchers cited: Danton A(066)066, Danton I(5/79)1348, Danton I(5/283)1628
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced	Skottsberg, Carl (1953) (p. 217)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (pp. 460, 461, 463, 464, 557)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Santa Clara	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Santa Clara	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (pp. 461, 465, 557) Voucher cited: Danton I(5/324)1671

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Chile (continental) Chile	Chile (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

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

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

Taxonomic information about Sagina chilensis 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.

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.

Flora of North America Editorial Committee, eds. 2011. Flora of North America North of Mexico (online edition).

Skottsberg, Carl. 1953. The natural history of Juan Fernandez and Easter Island. Vol. II, Botany. Almqvist &l; Wiksells, Uppsala. 960 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.