Canavalia rosea
Common name
Canavalia
Synonyms
Canavalia maritima Thouars, Canavalia obtusifolius (Lam.) DC.
Family
Fabaceae
Flora category
Vascular – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Lianes & Related Trailing Plants - Dicotyledons
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
CANROS
Chromosome number
2n = 22
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2017 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2012 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants.
Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – an interim threat classification status has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.
- Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2017 . 2018. Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, John W. Barkla, Shannel P. Courtney, Paul D. Champion, Leon R. Perrie, Sarah M. Beadel, Kerry A. Ford, Ilse Breitwieser, Ines Schönberger, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Peter B. Heenan and Kate Ladley. Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2017 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: OL, SO
Previous conservation statuses
2012 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: OL, SO
2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: DC. SO, OL
2004 | Range Restricted
Distribution
Indigenous. In New Zealand known only from the Kermadec Islands where it is not very common. Found throughout the warmer parts of the Pacific and Indian Oceans
Habitat
In New Zealand found on boulder beaches and sand dunes on the Kermadec Islands. This is a common beach strand plant of the Pacific Islands, where it usually grows with Lepturus repens (G.Forst.) R.Br., Ipomoea pes-caprae subsp. brasiliensis (L.) Ooststr., and Vignea marina (Burm.) Merr.
Detailed description
Perennial herb, procumbent and creeping or subscandent to lianoid. Stems up to 3 m, trailing, pubescent with appressed-pilose hairs when young. Leaflets 40-120 × 35-80 mm, dark green above, paler beneath, broad-obovate, broad elliptic, orbicular to obovate, apex rounded or emarginate, pilose-hairy when young, especially below, glabrescent. Inflorescences erect, racemose, few-flowered, peduncles stout, 50-300 mm long. Flowers clustered toward apex of rachis; pedicels 2-6 mm long. Calyx 8 mm long, upper lip 4 mm long, pilose. Petals dark pink; standard broadly elliptic-orbicular to orbicular, c.30 mm, rounded; wings and keel oblanceolate. Ovary silky-hairy; ovules c.7. Pods linear-oblong, initially dark green drying brownish-black, 70-140 × 25-30 mm, glabrescent, with a double rib dorsally and a single ventral rib. Seeds 15-20 mm, brown, often with dark markings, ellipsoid, somewhat flattened.
Similar taxa
None in New Zealand. A distinctive strand species which cannot be confused with any other plant growing in a similar habitat within the New Zealand Botanical Region.
Flowering
Throughout the year
Flower colours
Red/Pink
Fruiting
Throughout the year
Life cycle
Seeds are dispersed by water (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Easy from fresh seed. However extremely cold sensitive. Various attempts to cultivate it in New Zealand have so far failed because plants die during the winter months.
Threats
Not threatened. However very uncommon reaching its world southern limit in the New Zealand Botanical Region. Because it occupies such a narrow geographic area it is listed as Range Restricted.
Etymology
canavalia: This is a latinized form of kanavali a Malabar vernacular and the name for this genus of climbing herbs.
Where To Buy
Not commercially available (very cold sensitive)
Attribution
Description based on herbarium specimens held at AK and observations of cultivated material and plants seen in the wild on Raoul, Norfolk and Rarotonga.
References and further reading
Thorsen, M. J.; Dickinson, K. J. M.; Seddon, P. J. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 2009 Vol. 11 No. 4 pp. 285-309