Xanthosoma robustum Schott, Araceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 3 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Xanthosoma roseum Schott

Common name(s): [more details]

Hawaiian: ‘ape

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Plants very large and conspicuous, the caudex usually procumbent, often 1-4 meters long and 10-20 cm thick; petioles 40-180 cm long or much longer, vaginate to the middle; leaf blades sagittate-ovate, often two meters long but usually shorter, short-cuspidate, the basal lobes half as long as the anterior one, the blades glabrous, grass green above, pale beneath; tube of the spathe 6-10 cm long, 6 cm broad, oblong-ovoid, greenish, the limb twice as long, ovate-lanceolate, acute, greenish or whitish outside, white or pink within, 12-25 cm long and 10-25 cm wide; spadix stipitate 8 mm, slightly shorter than the spathe, the pistillate portion 3-4.5 cm long, almost 2 cm thick" (Standley & Steyermark, 1958; pp. 360-361).

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i "commonly naturalized in wet places" (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 613). In Guatemala, "wet soil, usually in marshy or boggy ground, in the open, in thickets, or in thin forest, 900 meters or lower, most plentiful at low elevations. The plant grows most often in boggy soil near stream banks, where it sometimes forms wide colonies" (Standley & Steyermark, 1958; pp. 360-361).

Propagation:  Seed?

Native range:  Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawaiian Islands	introduced cultivated	Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. (2005) (p. 613)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (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)

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

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

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

Other Latin names:  Xanthosoma roseum Schott

References:

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

Standley, Paul C. 1958. Flora of Guatemala. Fieldiana: Botany. Vol. 24, Part I. Chicago Natural History Museum. 478 pp.

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.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2009. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.