Cook Islands Biodiversity Database

Species Page

Back to: «« Search Page | « Results Page

Add to My List

Peperomia pellucida

Weedy Peperomia

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Leaves and flowers	35KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Weedy Peperomia

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE tropical Americas; EXOTIC EXOTIC circumtropical incl. Fiji, Samoa, Cooks, NOT Niue or Tonga

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Naturalised?; Land, lowlands, gardens; Occasionally epiphytic, from sea level to ~400m.

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: ; Weed - moderate (gardens only)

KEY FEATURES: Weak-stemmed, small sprawling herb. LEAVES alternate; heart-shaped, to 4x4cm; glossy light-green above, dull below; petiole ~2cm. FLOWERS on tiny spikes emerging from among leaves; green, minute. FRUIT tiny, to 1mmØ; round, green and berry-like.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
P	-	-

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-			-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Peperomia pellucida (Linnaeus)
SYNONYMS: Piper pellucidum [O]

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); MAGNOLIOPSIDA (=Dicotyledones); MAGNOLIIDAE; Piperales; PIPERACEAE

More Information

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
NEGATIVE SIGNIFICANCE: Weed - moderate (gardens only). Comments: Widespread tropical weed.

GENERAL NOTE: Flowering &/or fruiting spikes found all year round.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: Avarua, Welsh garden 10345 (PG97 List). S.Carruthers garden, Muri (GMc&FS00).

References:
Special Reference: Whistler, W.A. Weed handbook of Western Polynesia. (1983) Deutsche Gesellschaft für GTZ ltd, Eschborn:p062.

p.294 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.2/089 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
Please refer to our use policy.

Biodiversity Database: More Options | Help

My List: View List | Edit List | Clear List