Cook Islands Biodiversity Database

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Callisia fragrans

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Leaves and flower	70KB
Image:	Leaves and stalk	91KB
Image:	Leaves and stalk	83KB
Image:	Flower	44KB

General Information

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Mexico

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Naturalised; Land, lowlands, gardens

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental leaves

KEY FEATURES: Large trailing herb to 60cm height. LEAVES succulent with sticky sap; basal rosettes; large, to 25x8cm; pale green striped cream, stripes broken & variable. RUNNERS link rosettes; purplish with small green bract at each node; internodes ~5cm (very regular).

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

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

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

Callisia fragrans (Lindl.)
SYNONYMS: Spironema fragrans; Rectanthera fragrans

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); LILIOPSIDA (=Monocotyledones); COMMELINIDAE; Commelinales; COMMELINACEAE

More Information

GENERAL NOTE: The form in Hawaii has scentless flowers, although it is fragrant elsewhere [Neal, p.185].

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.202 Hortus 3rd
p.188 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants

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.
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