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Hymenocallis pedalis

Riri

White Spider Lily

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Leaves and flowers	45KB
Image:	Leaves and flowers	98KB
Image:	Flower detail	77KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: White Spider Lily

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Riri (RR TW), Lily (PL), Lili (TS), Riri Makita (MH)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e. S.America

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised, persistent; S.Group - common; N.Group - present; Land, lowlands and gardens

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental flowers

KEY FEATURES: Fleshy herb with ascending, strap-like leaves to 100x8cm. FLOWERS stalk to 90cm with terminal cluster of 4-10 flowers; each with slender green tube to 10cm, with 6 slender, white petals to 10cm; stamens green to 7cm, joined at basally by a white, funnel-like staminal cup to 3.5cmØ. Hymenocallis littoralis differs in having staminal cup resting on the petals (vs. clearly separated); leaves to 4cm wide (vs to 8cm).

SIMILAR SPECIES: Hymenocallis littoralis staminal cup pressed against the petals (=tepals) (vs. clearly separated); staminal cup wheel-like with margins not erect (vs funnel-like with erect margins); and outer third of leaves narrow, 2-4cm (vs. 3-8cm). Hymenocallis latifolia differs only in having cells with 2(-3) ovules (vs. 4-6(-8))

Enlarged Image of 'Hymenocallis pedalis'

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

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

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
+++	P		-		-

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

Hymenocallis pedalis Herbert
TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); LILIOPSIDA (=Monocotyledones); LILIIDAE; Liliales; LILIACEAE

More Information

IDENTIFICATION: Herb to 1m. LEAVES basal, fleshy, dark green, lancelike to 100x8cm. FLOWERS on stalk (=scape) to 90cm; 4-10; ovary with 3 cells each with 4-6(-8) ovules (only one forming a seed), green; corolla tube green, 15x0.5cm; petals (=lobes or tepals) 6, white, straplike, 10x0.5cm; staminal cup NOT pressed against petals, funnel-like flaring to 3.5cmØ; stamens 6, to 7cm, white in cup and 1cm beyond then green; style protuding 10cm, green.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: fieldspecimen+photo, east Arai-te-Tonga, 2003-4, G.McCormack ID as Hymenocallis littoralis in 2003, changed to Hymenocallis pedalis 2004 on reconsidering ACSmith 1/158 and his change 5/583.

References:
p.582 Hortus 3rd
p.591 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.5/583 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM03a, zupM04a, 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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