Tetrastigma pubinerve Merr. & Chun, Vitaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 8 (Go to the risk assessment)

Habit:  vine

Description:  Lianas, woody. Branchlets terete, with longitudinal ridges, transversely corrugated when dry, pubescent, then glabrescent; tendrils unbranched. Leaves pedately 5-foliolate; petiole 4-10.5 (-15) cm; central petiolule 1-2.5 cm, petiolules of lateral leaflet complex 1-2.5 cm, lateral petiolules 0.5-2 cm, transversely corrugated when dry, sparsely pubescent, then glabrescent; leaflets only pubescent abaxially on veins, then glabrescent, lateral veins 7-9 pairs, veinlets raised abaxially; central leaflet elliptic or elliptic-lanceolate, 12-25 x 4-7 cm, base broadly cuneate, margin 6-8-toothed on each side, apex acute or acuminate; lateral leaflets ovate-lanceolate or ovate-elliptic, 6-20 x 2.5-7 cm, base cuneate or subrounded, margin 4-7-toothed on each side, apex acute, acuminate, or obtuse. Inflorescence umbelliform, axillary, with nodes and bracts at lower portion; peduncle 1.3-2 cm, pubescent. Pedicel (2-) 3-4 mm, pubescent. Buds obovoid, 2.5-3.5 mm, apex subtruncate. Calyx shallow and saucer-shaped, papillose, teeth inconspicuous. Petals elliptic, 2-3 mm, apex corniculate, papillose. Anthers yellow, elliptic. Disk inconspicuous and annular in female flowers. Ovary ovoid, lower part of ovary adnate to disk; style inconspicuous; stigma 4-lobed. Berry globose, 1-1.2 cm in diameter, 2 (or 3)-seeded. Seeds obovoid, base sharp, apex retuse, ventral holes furrowed upward from middle to apex" (Flora of China online).

Habitat/ecology:  In its native China, "forests in valleys, shrublands on hillsides; 300-600 m" (Flora of China online).

In Hawai‘i, "the known infestation covers approximately 4 acres, where it claims into the canopy of mixed non-native trees, sometimes smothering them"  (Oppenheimer & Bartlett, 2000; p. 9).  "This climber thrives in hot, sunny conditions and can drape a tree or fence, forming a dense screen of clossy foliage"  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 573).

Propagation:  Seed, spread by birds; also vegetatively (Staples et al., 2000; p. 31).

Native range:  China  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 573).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Oppenheimer, Hank L./Bartlett, R. T. (2000) (p. 9) West Maui. Voucher cited: Oppenheimer & Annable H29910 (BISH)

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	Harvard University (2007)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2005) (p. 573)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	Harvard University (2007)

Additional information:
Information from the Bugwood Wiki.

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

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

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

References:

Harvard University. 2007. Flora of China (online resource).

Oppenheimer, Hank L./Bartlett, R. T. 2000. New plant records from Maui, O‘ahu, and the Hawai‘i Islands. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucius G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 1999. Part 2: Notes. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 64:1-10.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian Islands and other tropical places. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 908 pp.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral/Imada, Clyde T. 2000. Survey of invasive or potentially invasive cultivated plants in Hawai‘i. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers No. 65. 35 pp.