Syzygium thompsonii

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Syzygium thompsonii
Syzygium thompsonii - A specimen from Kew's Herbarium - K001002671.jpg
A specimen from Kew's herbarium
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Syzygium
Species:
S. thompsonii
Binomial name
Syzygium thompsonii
(Merr.) N.Snow (2010)
Synonyms
  • Eugenia thompsoniiMerr. (1914)
  • Jambosa thompsonii(Merr.) Diels

Syzygium thompsonii (Chamorro: atoto) is an endemic tree of the Mariana Islands of Guam, Rota, and Saipan [1] with a striking appearance due to its abundance of white flowers and edible fruit that grow directly from the trunk. [2] It is related to the Malay apple but bears smaller tart fruit.

Contents

Description

Edward D. Merrill, in An Enumeration of the Plants of Guam (1914), [2] described the tree from specimens sent to him from Guam:

The taxonomic key by Ryozo Kanehira indicates that the leaves are 8–14 cm (3.1–5.5 in) long. [3]

F. Raymond Fosberg, in TheFlora of Guam (1970), [4] mostly quotes Merrill's description, except:

Neil Snow & Jan Veldkamp wrote in Austrobaileya (2010) that the specimens from Guam seemed to "have more or less flattened branchlets with buds 11-13 mm long." This differed from specimens from Rota and Saipan, which "tend to be slightly 4-angled and have buds (6-)7-8.5 mm long," suggesting these qualify as separate subspecies. [5]

A particularly old specimen of Syzygium thompsonii in limestone karst of northern Guam. Demonstrates tall and narrow growth habit and shows where stems and fruits have emerged from the trunk over the years. Syzygium thompsonii trunk, Guam.jpg
A particularly old specimen of Syzygium thompsonii in limestone karst of northern Guam. Demonstrates tall and narrow growth habit and shows where stems and fruits have emerged from the trunk over the years.

Distribution and habitat

Syzygium thompsonii is a canopy tree found in limestone forests. [6] [7] It is listed as endemic only to the 3 southernmost Mariana islands: Guam, Rota and Saipan. [1] [4] On Guam, the tree is only found in the northern limestone forest. [8] The Smithsonian's US National Herbarium holds specimens from Saipan, collected from Water Cave and the north slope of Mt. Tapochau, [9] [10] It also holds specimens from Rota, collected from the limestone forest at the start of the last ascent into the savanna, and another from the high limestone area below the top cliffs of the western end of Rota. [11]

Ecology

Although the critically endangered Rota white-eye ( Zosterops rotensis ) is primarily insectivorous, it has been observed feeding on various fruits, including that of Syzygium thompsonii. [12] [13]

No insects were reported to have been collected from Syzygium thompsonii, based on a search of the Bishop Museum's Insects of Micronesia publications between 1955 and 2017. [14]

A 2016-2017 survey of the Northwest Field in northern Guam observed 36 specimens of the federally threatened orchid, Tuberolabium guamense, growing on three Syzygium thompsonii trees. [15]

Conservation status

Syzygium thompsonii has not been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). [16] A 2000 survey of plots on Anderson Airforce Base in northern Guam found no Syzygium thompsonii trees, nor did the 2008 Botanical Survey of the War in the Pacific National Historical Park Guam, which includes limestone forest in west-central Guam. [17] A 2013 forest inventory identified Syzygium thompsonii on only two of 48 island-wide plots, but estimated there were 178,000 trees on Guam (although with a substantial sampling error of 172,000). This inventory found Syzygium thompsonii to be the 29th most common tree of 49 species listed. Syzygium thompsonii accounted for 0.24% of all trees identified. All specimens were small, measuring between 1.0- and 4.9-inches diameter at breast height. [18] The 2016-2017 survey of the Northwest Field on Guam found Syzygium thompsonii occurrence as "Occasional." [15]

History

Syzygium thompsonii is not mentioned by Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré in his 1826 botanical review of the 1819 Freycinet Expedition of the Marianas, [19] nor by William E. Safford in his 1905 Useful Plants of Guam. [20] The earliest known specimens were collected in 1912 by John B. Thompson, who was the Special Agent in Charge at the US Department of Agriculture's Guam Agricultural Experiment Station on Guam. The species was first described in 1914 by E.D. Merrill in The Philippine Journal of Science, based on specimens sent to him by Thompson. Merrill originally named the species Eugenia thompsonii sp. nov. [2] in recognition of Thompson. These early specimens were spared from the destruction of the National Herbarium of the Philippines during World War II [21] and are now kept in the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew, [22] the Herbarium Pacificum of the Bernice Bishop Museum, Hawaii, [23] and the US National Herbarium in Washington, D.C. [24] Merrill includes a description of the tree as a "striking species" due to its foliage and the abundance of cauline flowers (growing directly from the trunk). [2]

Ludwig Diels (1921) provided a brief description of the tree, which he named Jambosa thompsonii. He also provided the indigenous name "makupa halomtano," måkupa being the CHamorro name for the Malay apple, which is cultivated on Guam, and hålom tåno' meaning literally "interior land." [25] [26] [27]

The first known record of the CHamorro name "atoto" is reported to be by Fosberg in 1946. [28] However, the species is not mentioned in Fosberg's The Vegetation of Micronesia (1960). [29] Stone, in The Flora of Guam (1970), commented on its rarity on Guam and described the tree as "a fine, handsome species worthy of cultivation." [4]

In 2010, Snow & Veldkamp reclassified the species as Syzygium thompsonii (Merr.) N.Snow comb. nov., which is now the accepted species name. [5] These authors also advised that the species should be merged with Syzygium trukense and Syzygium stelechanthum , both from the Caroline Islands. However, in 2012, Costion & Lorence disagreed with the merger, arguing that Syzygium trukense grows on volcanic soils of Chuuk, whereas the specimens on Guam is restricted to the northern limestone forest and has not been found growing in the volcanic soils of southern Guam. They further commented that it would be an unlikely geographical distribution involving only the southern Mariana Islands and Chuuk. [7] The Plants of the World Online database continues to list these 3 species as distinct from each other. [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guam</span> U.S. territory in the Pacific Ocean

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, and the most populous village is Dededo. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States, reckoned from the geographic center of the U.S. In Oceania, Guam is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesia. As of 2022, its population was 168,801. Chamorros are its largest ethnic group, but a minority on the multiethnic island. The territory spans 210 square miles and has a population density of 775 per square mile (299/km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariana mallard</span> Extinct species of bird

The Mariana mallard or Oustalet's duck is an extinct species of duck of the genus Anas that was endemic to the Mariana Islands. Its taxonomic status is debated, and it has variously been treated as a full species, a subspecies of the mallard or of the Pacific black duck, or sometimes as a subspecies of the Indian spot-billed duck.

<i>Syzygium</i> Genus of plants

Syzygium is a genus of flowering plants that belongs to the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. The genus comprises about 1200 species, and has a native range that extends from Africa and Madagascar through southern Asia east through the Pacific. Its highest levels of diversity occur from Malaysia to northeastern Australia, where many species are very poorly known and many more have not been described taxonomically. One indication of this diversity is in leaf size, ranging from as little as a half inch to as great as 4 ft 11 inches by sixteen inches in Syzygium acre of New Caledonia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariana crow</span> Species of bird

The Mariana crow is a species of the crow family from the tropical Western Pacific. It is a glossy black bird about 15 inches (38 cm) long and known only from the islands of Guam and Rota.

<i>Serianthes nelsonii</i> Species of legume

Serianthes nelsonii is a large tree endemic to Guam and Rota of the Mariana Islands. Only one mature tree existed on Guam, while 121 mature trees have been identified on Rota since 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridled white-eye</span> Species of bird

The bridled white-eye is a species of white-eye native to the Mariana Islands and formerly Guam. The species' natural habitat is tropical forests, shrublands and urban areas.

<i>Cycas micronesica</i> Species of cycad

Cycas micronesica is a species of cycad found on the island of Yap in Micronesia, the Marianaislands of Guam and Rota, and The Republic of Palau. It is commonly known as federico nut or fadang in Chamorro. The species, previously lumped with Cycas rumphii and Cycas circinalis, was described as a unique species in 1994 by Ken Hill. Paleoecological studies have determined that Cycas micronesica has been present on the island of Guam for about 9,000 years. It has been implicated as a factor in Lytico-Bodig disease, a condition similar to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), due to the presence of the neurotoxin BMAA found in its seeds. Seeds were a traditional food source on Guam until the 1960s. The neurotoxin is present due to a symbiosis with cyanobacteria.

<i>Syzygium hemilamprum</i> Species of tree

Syzygium hemilamprum, commonly known as the broad-leaved lilly pilly, blush satinash, cassowary gum, Eungella gum, and treated as Acmena hemilampra in New South Wales and Queensland, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is native to New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. It is a rainforest tree with broadly lance-shaped to elliptic leaves, panicles of white flowers and more or less spherical white fruit.

<i>Canarium acutifolium</i> Species of plant

Canarium acutifolium is a species of plant in the family Burseraceae, native to eastern Malesia, Papuasia and Queensland.

<i>Artocarpus mariannensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Artocarpus mariannensis, also known as the Marianas breadfruit or the seeded breadfruit, is a species of plant in the mulberry / fig family, Moraceae. It is endemic to the Mariana Islands and Guam. It has been utilized extensively by the Micronesian people, being one of the staple food crops that was introduced to other islands in Micronesia.

<i>Bikkia tetrandra</i> Species of plant

Bikkia tetrandra is an herbaceous member of the family Rubiaceae, distinguished by its white square-shaped flowers. It is native to Papuasia and islands of the western Pacific, including the Caroline Islands, Fiji, Mariana Islands, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Niue, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Wallis-Futuna Islands. The stems ignite easily and can be used to make torches or candles.

<i>Eugenia palumbis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eugenia palumbis is a shrub with edible fruits in the family Myrtaceae. It is endemic to the Mariana Islands, including Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

<i>Elaeocarpus joga</i> Species of plant

Elaeocarpus joga is a species of tree in the family Elaeocarpaceae. It is native to the Mariana Islands and Palau. It is a moderately-sized tree with blue-coloured, round, 1.5cm diameter fruit and leaves which turn bright red before they senescence.

<i>Gymnosporia thompsonii</i> Species of flowering plant

Gymnosporia thompsonii is a species of plant in the bittersweet family Celastraceae. It is endemic to the Mariana and Caroline Islands, where it grows as a many-stemmed understory shrub or small tree in karst forests. Its wood is used for fuel and its leaves are used medicinally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marianas tropical dry forests</span> Tropical dry broadleaf forests ecoregion of the Mariana Islands

The Marianas tropical dry forests is a tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests ecoregion on the Marianas Islands in the western Pacific Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Mariana Islands</span>

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Mariana Islands refers to the organization and its members in the Mariana Islands. The Mariana Islands consist of two jurisdictions of the United States: the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and, at the southern end of the chain, the territory of Guam. As of December 31, 2022, the LDS Church reported 2,547 members in one stake, five congregations, one mission, and one temple in Guam. There are 906 members in a ward in the Northern Mariana Islands. There are two family history centers, one in Guam and one at the Saipan Ward building in the Northern Mariana Islands.

<i>Callicarpa lamii</i> Species of plant in the mint family

Callicarpa lamii is a plant in the mint family that is endemic to the Mariana Islands. It is one of two Callicarpa plants endemic to the Mariana Islands, the other being Callicarpa candicans var. paucinervia.

<i>Syzygium puberulum</i> Species of flowering plant

Syzygium puberulum, commonly known as white satinash or downy satinash, is a plant in the family Myrtaceae which is native to rainforests of Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, and Papua New Guinea. It was first described in 1942.

<i>Glochidion marianum</i> Species of plant

Glochidion marianum is a species of plant in the family Phyllanthaceae that is endemic to the islands of Guam and the Caroline Islands.

References

See also

List of endemic plants in the Mariana Islands

References

  1. 1 2 "Syzygium thompsonii (Merr.) N.Snow | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Merrill, M.S., E.D. (1914). "An Enumeration of the Plants of Guam". The Philippine Journal of Science. IX (Section C, No. 1). Manila: 15, 121.
  3. ↑ St. John, Harold (1956). A Translation of the Keys in the Flora Micronesica (1933) of Ryozo Kanehira (PDF). p. 99.
  4. 1 2 3 Stone, B.C. (1970). "The Flora of Guam. A Manual for the Identification of the Vascular Plants of the Island". Micronesica. 6 (1/2). University of Guam: 451–452.
  5. 1 2 Snow, Neil; Veldkamp, J.F. (2010). "Miscellaneous taxonomic and nomenclatural notes for Myrtaceae". Austrobaileya. 8 (2): 177–186. doi: 10.5962/p.299802 . ISSN   0155-4131. JSTOR   41739132. S2CID   87804757.
  6. ↑ "Syzygium thompsonii (Merr.) N.Snow". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  7. 1 2 Costion, Craig M.; Lorence, David H. (2012). "The Endemic Plants of Micronesia: A Geographical Checklist and Commentary" (PDF). Micronesica. 43 (1): 82.
  8. ↑ "Syzygium thompsonii (Merr.) N.Snow". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
  9. ↑ "Botany Collections Search". collections.nmnh.si.edu. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  10. ↑ "Botany Collections Search". collections.nmnh.si.edu. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  11. ↑ "Occurrence Detail 2235947906". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
  12. ↑ "Rota White-eye (Zosterops rotensis) - BirdLife species factsheet". datazone.birdlife.org. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  13. ↑ "Rota White-eye". Pacific Bird Conservation. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  14. ↑ "Insects of Micronesia". hbs.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  15. 1 2 Demeulenaere, Else; Putnam, Matthew; Fiedler, G. Curt (2018). Project Report: Threatened and Endangered Plant Surveys of Northwest Field. University of Guam. pp. 14, 23.
  16. ↑ "Search". IUCN. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  17. ↑ Yoshioka, Joan M. (July 2008). "Botanical Survey of the War in the Pacific National Historical Park Guam, Mariana Islands". hdl:10125/26985.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  18. ↑ Michelle, Lazaro; Kuegler, Olaf; Stanton, Sharon; Lehman, Ashley; Mafnas, Joseph; Yatskov, Mikhail. "Guam's Forest Resources: Forest Inventory and Analysis, 2013" (PDF). United States Department of Agriculture.
  19. ↑ Freycinet, Louis Claude Desaulses de; Arago, Jacques; Bevalet, Antoine-Germain; Blanchard, E.; Chazal, Antoine; Clermont-Tonnerre, Aimé-Marie-Gaspard; Corbière, Jacques Joseph; Coutant, L.; Eudes-Deslongchamps (1826). Voyage autour du monde, entrepris par ordre du roi. Exécuté sur les corvettes de S.M. l'Uranie et la Physicienne, pendant les années 1817, 1818, 1819 et 1820. Vol. 4. Paris: Chez Pillet aîné.
  20. ↑ Safford, William Edwin (1905). The useful plants of the Island of Guam; with an introductory account of the physical features and natural history of the island, of the character and history of its people, and of their agriculture. Smithsonian Libraries. Washington.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  21. ↑ "Botany and National Herbarium – National Museum".
  22. ↑ "Syzygium thompsonii (Merr.) N.Snow [family MYRTACEAE] on JSTOR". plants.jstor.org. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  23. ↑ "Occurrence Detail 1090308737". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
  24. ↑ "Occurrence Detail 2236116771". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
  25. ↑ Diels, L. (1921). "Beiträge zur Flora von Mikronesien und Polynesien. II". Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie. Leipzig: Wilhelm Engelmann: 533.
  26. ↑ "Definition of MAKOPA". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  27. ↑ "hålom tåno' | Chamorro to English Translation - Chamoru.info | Chamorro Dictionary". www.chamoru.info. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  28. ↑ C., Falanruw, Marjorie (1990). Common and scientific names of trees and shrubs of Mariana, Caroline, and Marshall Islands. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. p. 91. OCLC   681975010.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  29. ↑ Fosber, F. Raymond (1960). The Vegetation of Micronesia. New York: American Museum of Natural History.
  30. ↑ "Syzygium trukense (Hosok.) Costion & E.Lucas | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
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