Family: Strelitziaceae

Origin, Description & Uses
Ravenala madagascariensis (traveller’s palm) is native to eastern and southeastern Madagascar. Despite its common name, it is not a true palm but a member of the bird-of-paradise family. It is a striking tropical plant with a tall, upright trunk and large, banana-like leaves arranged in a distinctive fan shape. The plant is widely grown as an ornamental in landscapes and gardens for its dramatic architectural form, and it is also used as a focal point in tropical and resort-style plantings. In its native range, parts of the plant have traditional uses, including water stored in leaf bases and utilization of leaves for thatching or weaving.

Risks & Threats
In Hawaiʻi, traveller’s palm is considered low risk and is primarily valued as a non-invasive ornamental species. It does not currently show strong tendencies to spread aggressively or displace native ecosystems under typical landscape conditions. However, like many widely planted tropical ornamentals, it can form clumps over time and may spread locally in favorable moist environments if unmanaged. Continued monitoring is still appropriate to ensure it remains well-behaved in Hawaiian ecosystems, but overall it is not regarded as a significant ecological threat compared to known invasive species.

High Risk Traits:

• Naturalized and a major environmental weed in Mauritius (forms monocultures)
  
• Thrives in tropical/subtropical climates
  
• Widely introduced outside its native range
  
• Host to multiple recognized pests and pathogens
  
• Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions
  
• Produces viable seed
  
• Self-compatible (can self-fertilize)
  
• Reproduces vegetatively by suckering
  
• Propagules intentionally dispersed by people
  
• Seeds bird-dispersed (fleshy blue aril)

Low Risk Traits:

• No spines, thorns, or burrs
  
• No evidence of allelopathy, toxicity, or allergenicity
  
• Not shade tolerant (requires full sun to partial shade)
  
• Requires specialist pollinators (lemurs or birds) in native range
  
• Propagules not adapted for wind or water dispersal
  
• No evidence of accidental dispersal or produce contamination
  
• Not prolific seed producer (seeds relatively large)