- Mentigi bushes behind a dry grass field in Europa Island.
- Mentigi branches
Pemphis acidula | |
---|---|
Pemphis acidula bushes on the shore of Réunion Island | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Myrtales |
Family: | Lythraceae |
Genus: | Pemphis |
Species: | P. acidula |
Binomial name | |
Pemphis acidula | |
Synonyms [2] | |
Pemphis acidula, commonly known as bantigue (pron. bahn-TEE-geh) or mentigi, [3] [4] [5] is a species of flowering plant in the family Lythraceae. It is the only species in the genus Pemphis . [6]
It is found growing in sandy and calcareous soils in littoral zones, rocky shores and mangroves throughout most of the tropical Indo-Pacific. [7] [5]
The mentigi is a stocky bush that grows up to 25 feet (760 cm) high with dense and twisted branches. Its greyish leaves are small but thick and hairy. [5] [8] : 52
Its flowers are small and not fragrant, each has six delicate white petals and come from stalks 5–15 mm long. [4] [8]
The wood of this species has been traditionally valued in many cultures for it is hard and heavy, as well as resistant to rot and warping. It also has naturally a fine finish and may be fashioned into walking canes, fence posts, tool handles, and even anchors. [9] In Réunion and Mauritius it is known as bois matelot. [10] In the Maldives this hardy wood was used in traditional shipbuilding to hold the planks of the hull together, as well as to fashion "nails" in local sorcery. [11]
Pemphis acidula is also one of the plant species used in bonsai. Due to its tropical preference and typhoon-resistance, it is the most common species for bonsai in the Philippines; but it is also grown as bonsai in Taiwan and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. [3] [12] [13] Due to its popularity and high value among bonsai enthusiasts, it is among the list of species classified as 'threatened' by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines. The collection, selling, and transport of wild Pemphis acidula is illegal in the Philippines and punishable by fines and imprisonment of up to six years. [14] [15]
In Marovo Island, Tonga, Tahiti, and other South Pacific islands, it is used to make wooden tools such as pestles, tool handles, weapons, and combs. [16]
In Taiwan's Kenting National Park illegal picking has had a negative impact on the coastal ecosystem. [17]
The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is a U.S. National Marine Sanctuary in the Florida Keys. It includes the Florida Reef, the only barrier coral reef in North America and the third-largest coral barrier reef in the world. It also has extensive mangrove forest and seagrass fields. The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, designated in 1990, is the ninth national marine sanctuary to be established in a system that comprises 13 sanctuaries and two marine national monuments. The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary protects approximately 2,900 square nautical miles of coastal and ocean waters from the estuarine waters of south Florida along the Florida Keys archipelago, encompassing more than 1,700 islands, out to the Dry Tortugas National Park, reaching into the Atlantic Ocean, Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
Pandanus tectorius is a species of Pandanus (screwpine) that is native to Malesia, Papuasia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. It grows in the coastal lowlands typically near the edge of the ocean. Common names in English include thatch screwpine, Tahitian screwpine, hala tree and pandanus. The fruit is edible and sometimes known as hala fruit.
Acronychia is a genus of about fifty species of plants in the rue family Rutaceae. The leaves are simple or pinnate, and the flowers bisexual with four sepals, four petals and eight stamens. They have a broad distribution including in India, Malesia, Australia and the islands of the western Pacific Ocean. About twenty species are endemic to Australia.
Cordia subcordata is a species of flowering tree in the borage family, Boraginaceae, that occurs in eastern Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, northern Australia and the Pacific Islands. The plant is known by a variety of names including beach cordia, sea trumpet, and kerosene wood, among others.
The wildlife of the Maldives includes the flora and fauna of the islands, reefs, and the surrounding ocean.
Triphasia trifolia is a species of Triphasia in the family Rutaceae, native to tropical southeastern Asia especially in Indonesian islands and Philippines and possibly elsewhere.
The tall-stilt mangrove belongs to the Plantae kingdom under the Rhizophoraceae family. R. apiculata is distributed throughout Australia, Guam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, the Maldives, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam. Rhizophora apiculata is called ‘bakhaw lalaki,’ in the Philippines, "Thakafathi ތަކަފަތި" in the Maldives, 'Đước' in Vietnam, Garjan in India, as well as other vernacular names.
Guettarda speciosa, with common names sea randa, or zebra wood, is a species of shrub in the family Rubiaceae found in coastal habitats in tropical areas around the Pacific Ocean, including the coastline of central and northern Queensland and Northern Territory in Australia, and Pacific Islands, including Micronesia, French Polynesia and Fiji, Malaysia and Indonesia, Maldives and the east coast of Africa. It reaches 6 m in height, has fragrant white flowers, and large green prominently-veined leaves. It grows in sand above the high tide mark.
Ficus obliqua, commonly known as the small-leaved fig, is a tree in the family Moraceae, native to eastern Australia, New Guinea, eastern Indonesia to Sulawesi and islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Previously known for many years as Ficus eugenioides, it is a banyan of the genus Ficus, which contains around 750 species worldwide in warm climates, including the edible fig. Beginning life as a seedling, which grows on other plants (epiphyte) or on rocks (lithophyte), F. obliqua can grow to 60 m (200 ft) high and nearly as wide with a pale grey buttressed trunk, and glossy green leaves.
Pemphis is a genus of maritime plants in family Lythraceae. It has only one species described in 1775, Pemphis acidula.
Nypa fruticans, commonly known as the nipa palm or mangrove palm, is a species of palm native to the coastlines and estuarine habitats of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the only palm considered adapted to the mangrove biome. The genus Nypa and the subfamily Nypoideae are monotypic taxa because this species is their only member.
Xylocarpus granatum, commonly known as the cannonball mangrove, cedar mangrove, or puzzlenut tree, is a species of mangrove in the mahogany family (Meliaceae). It is found in Africa, Asia, Australasia and the Pacific Islands. It is a common species of mangrove, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".
Homalanthus nutans, known locally as the mamala tree, is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. In Australia it is known as the bleeding heart and the Queensland poplar.
Sonneratia caseolaris, commonly known as mangrove apple, is a species of plant in the family Lythraceae. The fruit is noted for its outward similarity to the persimmon fruit.
Scaevola taccada, also known as beach cabbage, sea lettuce, or beach naupaka, is a flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae found in mangrove swamps and rocky or sandy coastal locations in the tropical areas of the Indo-Pacific. It is a common beach shrub throughout the Arabian Sea, the tropical Indian Ocean and the tropical islands of the Pacific Ocean.
Bruguiera cylindrica is a mangrove in the family Rhizophoraceae. It grows in mangrove swamps in tropical Asia.
Lumnitzera racemosa, commonly known as the white-flowered black mangrove, is a species of mangrove in the family Combretaceae. It is found on the eastern coast of Africa and other places in the western Indo-Pacific region. It has one accepted variety from the noniminate species, Lumnitzera racemosa var. lutea (Gaudich.) Exell.
The Central Polynesian tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Polynesia. It includes the northern group of the Cook Islands, the Line Islands in Kiribati, and Johnston Atoll, Jarvis Island, Palmyra Atoll, and Kingman Reef which are possessions of the United States.
The Western Polynesian tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Polynesia. It includes Tuvalu, the Phoenix Islands in Kiribati, Tokelau, and Howland and Baker islands, which are possessions of the United States.
Pometia is a genus of 2 species of rainforest trees, constituting part of the plant family Sapindaceae.
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