Family: Amaranthaceae
High Risk Traits:
- Broad climate suitability
- Thrives in tropical climates
- Naturalized on Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui and Hawaii (Hawaiian Islands) and widely naturalized elsewhere
- A weed of disturbed sites, lawns, agriculture and the natural environment (although primarily a weed of beach parks and low elevation disturbed sites in Hawaiian Islands)
- Other Alternanthera species are invasive
- Spine-tipped bracts
- Unpalatable to most animals
- Toxic to animals and people
- Tolerates many soil types
- Forms dense cover that can exclude other vegetation
- Reproduces by seeds and vegetatively by rooting at nodes and stem fragments
- Reaches maturity in one growing season
- Prickly burrs attach to animals, clothing and machinery
- Also dispersed by water, by cultivation and as a soil and crop contaminant
- Seeds can persist in soil for several years
- Able to resprout from taproot if not entirely removed from soil
Low Risk Traits:
- May be shade intolerant
- Herbicides can provide effective control