General Information

COMMON NAMES: Winged Yam, Greater Yam, Water Yam, Asiatic Yam, White Yam; German Yamswurzel TRADITIONAL NAMES: U‘i (RR MG AT MK AK), U‘i Mōtau (MT); Other Polynesian - Soi / Ufi (SAM) GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE se.Asia COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Polynesian, Not naturalised; Land, lowlands SIGNIFICANCE LIST: ; Nationally endangered (seriously)Food (Root 1+) Outer

Cook Islands Distribution

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

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Dioscorea alata Linnaeus
TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); LILIOPSIDA (=Monocotyledones); LILIIDAE; Liliales; DIOSCOREACEAE

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
BIODIVERSITY: Nationally endangered (seriously). Comment: Speceis and varieties of Yam are being lost on some islands. In teh NBSAP the "yam" is listed as teh most endangered domestic plant on Mauke. In teh Plant Genetic resources Workshop (Rarotonga, August 2003) yams were recorded as lost on Atiu and Mauke, with three remaining on Aitutaki and Mangaia, one on Mitiaro, and none on Rarotonga. The Cook Islands colleciton of six varieties formerly maintained at the Totokoitu Research Station had all been lost. The reasons for the lost from various islands were: pig damage, emigration of people, too labour intensive, and taste not now acceptable.
POSITIVE SIGNIFICANCE: Food (Root 1+) Outer

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.230 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.1/170 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova
p.299 A? Cheeseman - Flora of Rarotonga
p.31 Wilder - Flora of Rarotonga
p.410e Whistler - Ethnobotany of the Cook Islands

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

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