Sanchezia parvibracteata Sprague & Hutchinson, Acanthaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

English: sanchezia, shrubby whitevein

Spanish: espinazo de pescado

Tongan: moa

Habit:  shrub

Description:  "A large suffrutescent herb; stems smooth, subquadrangular, the angles rounded; leaf blades oblanceolate, up to 26 cm long and 7 cm wide or more, acuminate, subfalcate, narrowed at base and decurrent on the petiole, glabrous, undulate or shallowly dentate, puncticulate above, the costa and lateral veins (11 or 12 pairs) prominent beneath, the cystoliths on both surfaces numerous, about 0.5 mm long; inflorescence a sparingly branched terminal panicle up to 16 cm long, and 3 to 4 cm broad, the fascicles usually several-flowered, sessile, subsecund, the bracts subtending them triangular-ovate, subconnate, 10 to 12 mm long, about 6 mm wide at base, the bracts subtending the flowers ovate, up to 16 cm long and about 9 mm wide, obtusish, glabrous, ciliolate; bractlets oblanceolate, 15 mm long, about 4 mm wide, sparingly puberulent without, ciliolate, both bracts and bractlets firm, green or yellowish toward tip; calyx 2 cm long, the segments oblanceolate, 4 to 6 mm wide, acutish, glabrous proximally, puberulous distally, ciliolate, yellow; corolla ochre, 4 to 5 cm long, about 5 mm broad immediately above the ovary, about 10 mm in diameter at throat, rather densely pubescent distally with yellowish retrorsely curved hairs, the lower portion glabrous, the lobes oblong, about 6 mm long and 4 mm wide, emarginate; stamens exserted 7 to 8 mm beyond mouth of corolla, the filaments tomentose at and above the insertion, thence sparingly pilose (the hairs up to 1.5 mm long), but distally glabrous, the anthers 6 mm long, 2.5 mm broad, the sacs pubescent, the basal lobes ending in subulate spreading spurs about 1 mm long; staminodes 15 mm long, sparingly pilose, ovary and style glabrous; capsule not seen" (Leonard, 1958; pp. 56-57).

Habitat/ecology:  A shade-loving shrub (to ca. 5 m tall). Can form dense thickets which exclude most other vegetation. Wet tropical areas, particularly along stream margins (Csurhes and Edwards, 1998; p. 128).

Propagation:  Reproduces from small fragments and can be spread by flowing water. Suckers profusely.

Native range:  Tropical South America.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Aitutaki Atoll	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2002) (p. 15)
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	‘Atiu Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2002) (p. 15)
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Rarotonga Island	introduced invasive	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2002) (p. 15) Voucher: Flynn 6997 (PTBG, BISH, US)
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Rarotonga Island		National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (2002) (voucher ID: PTBG 341) Taxon name on voucher: Sanchezia parvibracteata
Federated States of Micronesia Kosrae Island	Kosrae Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy (2010) (p. 11) "Potentially invasive".
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced cultivated	Herrera, Katherine/Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy/Balick, Michael J. (2010) (p. 65)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced cultivated	Imada, Clyde T./Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2011) (p. Voucher specimen) Voucher cited: Cuddihy 526 (BISH 656064)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Parker, James L./Parsons, Bobby (2012) (p. 55) Voucher cited: J. Parker & R. Parsons BIED47 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced cultivated	Imada, Clyde T./Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2011) (p. Voucher specimen) Voucher cited: Herbst 5696 (BISH 415738)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced cultivated	Imada, Clyde T./Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2011) (p. Voucher specimens) Voucher cited: Woolford 281 (BISH 40292)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 9) Vouchers cited: MacKee 9952, MacKee 11859 Spontané
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara M./Newfield, Melanie/Bull, Cate (2004) (p. 46) Matavai Resort
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 86)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island	introduced invasive	Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie (2009) (p. 21)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 82)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Lorence, David H./LaRosa, Anne Marie (2009) (p. 21)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Malakal Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 82)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Ngerkebesang Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 82)
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 56)

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)	Queensland	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 128)
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)
Ecuador (Mainland) Ecuador	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
El Salvador El Salvador	El Salvador (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)
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)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

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

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

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

References:

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

Humphries, S. E./Stanton, J. P. 1992. Weed assessment in the wet tropics world heritage area of north Queensland. Report to The Wet Tropics Management Agency. 75 pp. plus plates.

Imada, Clyde T./Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2011. Annotated Checklist of Cultivated Plants of Hawai‘i (online searchable database).

Leonard, E. C. 1958. Leonard, E. C. 1958. The Acanthaceae of Columbia. Contr. from the U.S. National Herbarium 31(1).

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Timothy. 2010. Checklist of the plants of Kosrae. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 26 pp.

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.). 2002. Voucher specimen #PTBG341(Tim Flynn 6997).

Parker, James L./Parsons, Bobby. 2012. New plant records from the Big Island for 2009. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucius G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 2011. Part II: Plants. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 113:55-63.

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.

Space, James C./Flynn, Tim. 2002. Report to the Government of the Cook Islands on invasive plant species of environmental concern. USDA Forest Service, Honolulu. 146 pp.

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.

Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara M./Newfield, Melanie/Bull, Cate. 2004. Report to the Government of Niue and the United Nations Development Programme: Invasive plant species on Niue following Cyclone Heta. UNDP NIU/98/G31 - Niue Enabling Activity. 80 pp.

Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar. 2003. Report to the Republic of Palau on invasive plant species of environmental concern. USDA Forest Service, Honolulu. 174 pp.

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

Whistler, W. A. 1991. The ethnobotany of Tonga: The plants, their Tongan names, and their uses. Bishop Museum Bulletin in Botany 2. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 155 pp. ISBN 0-930897-57-9.