Odontonema cuspidatum
(Cardinal’s guard)

Pictures

Picture	Title	Caption	Copyright
Title Habit Caption Odontonema cuspidatum (Cardinal’s guard); habit. El Yunque National Forests, Puerto Rico. November 2012. Copyright ©Smithsonian Institution/Pedro Acevedo	Habit	Odontonema cuspidatum (Cardinal’s guard); habit. El Yunque National Forests, Puerto Rico. November 2012.	©Smithsonian Institution/Pedro Acevedo
Title Flowers Caption Odontonema cuspidatum (Cardinal’s guard); flowers. El Yunque National Forests, Puerto Rico. November 2012. Copyright ©Smithsonian Institution/Pedro Acevedo	Flowers	Odontonema cuspidatum (Cardinal’s guard); flowers. El Yunque National Forests, Puerto Rico. November 2012.	©Smithsonian Institution/Pedro Acevedo

Identity

Preferred Scientific Name

• Odontonema cuspidatum (Nees) Kuntze

Preferred Common Name

• Cardinal’s guard

Other Scientific Names

• Odontonema strictum Sensu West Indian authors, non (Nees) Kuntze
• Thyrsacanthus cuspidatus Nees

International Common Names

• English: cardinal flower; cardinal’s crest; fire spike; mottled toothedthread; odontonema; red justicia; scarlet firespike

Local Common Names

• Ecuador: lava botellas
• Mexico: coral de jardín; flor de chupa miel; flor de chuparrosa
• Paraguay: clavo de fuego
• Saint Lucia: firespike

Summary of Invasiveness

O. cuspidatum is a shrub commonly planted as an ornamental for its attractive red tubular flowers. It has escaped from cultivation and can be found naturalized in disturbed areas as well as in relatively unaltered forests (Lorence et al., 1995; Space and Flynn, 2002; Meyer and Lavergne, 2004). O. cuspidatum represents a serious problem due to its ability to invade the understory of native forests. O. cuspidatum is included in the Global Compendium of Weeds (Randall , 2012), and it is also listed as invasive in Hawaii, French Polynesia, Samoa, the Galápagos Islands, and Cuba (Lorence et al., 1995; Meyer and Lavergne, 2004; Oviedo Prieto et al., 2012; PIER, 2014). It is considered as potentially invasive in Puerto Rico (Rojas-Sandoval and Acevedo-Rodríguez, unpublished data).

Taxonomic Tree

• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Plantae
•         Phylum: Spermatophyta
•             Subphylum: Angiospermae
•                 Class: Dicotyledonae
•                     Order: Scrophulariales
•                         Family: Acanthaceae
•                             Genus: Odontonema
•                                 Species: Odontonema cuspidatum

Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature

The family Acanthaceae includes about 221 genera and 4000 species widespread in both New and Old World Tropics (Scotland and Vollesen, 2000; Stevens, 2012). Species within this family are herbs or woody shrubs, lianas and trees. Member of the Acanthaceae may be recognized by their fruit: a few-seeded, explosively dehiscent capsule within which seeds are borne on hook-like structures called retinacula (the lignified derivatives of the funiculus) (McDade et al., 2008).

The genus Odontonema is native to the New World and includes about 20-30 species distributed in Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean (Daniel, 1995). Several Odontonema species are commonly cultivated as ornamentals in nurseries, greenhouses, and gardens in tropical and subtropical regions (Daniel, 1995; Francis, 2005).

Francis (2005) lists Odontonema tubiforme (Bertol.) Kuntze as a synonym of O. cuspidatum, and states that some authors propose separating O. cuspidatum and O. tubiforme into individual species or using only the name O. tubiforme. The ITIS database, however, says that I. tubiforme is an orthographic variant (misspelling) of the accepted species Odontonema tubaeforme (Bertol.) Kuntze. Odontonema strictum has been listed by various authorities as a synonym of both O. cuspidatum and O. tubaeforme.

Plant Type

Distribution

O. cuspidatum is native to Mexico (Daniel, 1995; USDA-ARS, 2014). It has been widely cultivated as an ornamental and can now be found naturalized in the southern United States (Florida), Central and South America, West Indies and several islands in the Pacific Ocean (see distribution table for details, Daniel 1995, 2001, 2005; PIER, 2014; USDA-ARS, 2014).

Distribution Table

The distribution in this summary table is based on all the information available. When several references are cited, they may give conflicting information on the status. Further details may be available for individual references in the Distribution Table Details section which can be selected by going to Generate Report.

History of Introduction and Spread

According to Meyer and Lavergne (2004), O. cuspidatum (under the name O. strictum) was first collected in 1927 in Tahiti (French Polynesia) and in 1937 in Hawaii. Wagner et al. (1990) reported this species for Hawaii (under the name O. strictum) as “sometimes observed in disturbed areas” and concluded that the species “does not appear to be naturalized”. In the website treatment for the flora of Hawaii, Wagner et al. (2005) correct the name of the Hawaiian plants to O. cuspidatum and report the species as naturalized. In the West Indies, the occurrence of O. cuspidatum was reported as early as 1900 for Cuba (Urban, 1901). In 1925, Britton and Wilson reported O. cuspidatum as a strictly garden plant. By 1997, O. cuspidatum was reported as escaped (Liogier, 1997) in Puerto Rico, and in 1999 Acevedo-Rodríguez and Axelrod reported it as an “aggressive exotic, very common in the understory of secondary forests and plantations” for areas of the Rio Abajo Forest Reserve. Currently, O. cuspidatum is widespread along roadsides and understory of secondary forest in numerous localities across Puerto Rico and in areas of the El Yunque National Forest (Acevedo- Rodríguez unpublished data). In the Dominican Republic O. cuspidatum is known to occur since 1921 as a roadside plant (US Herbarium Collection). The species is considered as escaped in the most recent flora of Hispaniola (Liogier, 1995). In summary, these sources indicate that O. cuspidatum has the capacity of becoming naturalized and abundant in a relatively short period of time after being introduced as a garden plant.

Risk of Introduction

The risk of introduction of O cuspidatum is high. It has been widely cultivated as an ornamental in tropical and subtropical regions of the world where it has escaped and become naturalized in natural habitats (Daniel, 1995; Lorence et al., 1995; Meyer and Lavergne 2004; Liogier, 1995, 1997). The ability of this species to tolerate shaded conditions and spread vegetatively by root-suckers means that it has a high potential to colonize new areas and spread much further than it has to date (Meyer and Lavergne, 2004).

Habitat

O. cuspidatum can be found naturalized in wet open areas, secondary forests, forest edges, along roadsides, lowland rainforests, montane forests, pine-oak forests, and cloud forests from sea level to 1950 m (Lorence et al., 1995; Space and Flynn, 2002; Meyer and Lavergne, 2004; PIER, 2014). Because it is shade tolerant, it is able to colonize the understory of both disturbed and mature forests (Space and Flynn, 2002; Meyer and Lavergne, 2004).

Habitat List

Biology and Ecology

Genetics

The chromosome number for the species O. cuspidatum is unknown. However, for the genus Odontonema the chromosome number reported is n=21 (Daniel, 1995). 

Reproductive Biology

Flowers in O. cuspidatum are heterostylous and require specialized pollinators to set fruits. Within its native distribution range, it is visited and possibly pollinated by hummingbirds (Daniel, 1995). 

Physiology and Phenology

In warm and moist climates, O. cuspidatum has been reported flowering and fruiting throughout the year (Daniel, 1995), but in temperate climates it flowers in the autumn (Watkins, 1975; Francis, 2005). 

Environmental Requirements

O. cuspidatum grows best on fertile and moderately fertile soils, with neutral pH, that are continually moist. It is shade tolerant but does not tolerate salty soils or freezing conditions and plants generally die if the ground is frozen (Watkins, 1975; Francis, 2005). O. cuspidatum grows in wet, montane, rain, and cloud forests from sea level to 1950 m in elevation (Daniel, 1995).

Climate

Air Temperature

Soil Tolerances

Soil drainage

• free

Soil reaction

• neutral

Soil texture

• light
• medium

Notes on Natural Enemies

The cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) has been recorded on leaves of O. cuspidatum plants (Baker et al., 2012). Plants can also be attacked by mealy bugs belonging to the genus Pseudococcidae (Francis, 2005).

Means of Movement and Dispersal

O. cuspidatum spreads by seeds and vegetatively by stem segments or root-suckers. Seeds are produced in capsules that fall off before drying, liberating the seeds (Francis, 2005). In Puerto Rico, although O. cuspidatum is common, plants produce few viable seeds and most of the stands of this species have originated from abandoned gardens or stem segments and/or roots that have been transported by streams or dumped in the woods with garden disposals. Once established, O. cuspidatum spreads mostly by root suckers. The stems also layer (root) easily when they become prostrate (Francis, 2005).

Pathway Causes

Pathway Vectors

Impact Summary

Environmental Impact

O. cuspidatum is an aggressive species that can grow forming dense thickets in the understory of secondary and relatively unaltered forests. For example, Meyer and Lavergne (2004) reported dense monospecific stands of this species (between 100 m² and 500 m²) in the understory of secondary low- and mid-elevation wet forest in Hawaii, Tahiti, and Samoa; a similar pattern has been reported for Puerto Rico (Acevedo-Rodríguez and Axelrod, 1999). O. cuspidatum is also invading native montane rainforest in Tahiti (Meyer and Lavergne, 2004). In Cuba, O. cuspidatum is listed as one of the 100 most noxious plants invading natural habitats (Oviedo Prieto et al., 2012).

Risk and Impact Factors

• Proved invasive outside its native range
• Abundant in its native range
• Highly adaptable to different environments
• Is a habitat generalist
• Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc
• Tolerant of shade
• Highly mobile locally
• Benefits from human association (i.e. it is a human commensal)
• Long lived
• Fast growing
• Reproduces asexually

• Ecosystem change/ habitat alteration
• Monoculture formation
• Reduced native biodiversity
• Threat to/ loss of native species

• Competition - monopolizing resources
• Competition - smothering
• Pest and disease transmission
• Rapid growth
• Rooting

• Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately
• Difficult to identify/detect in the field

Uses

O. cuspidatum is an economically important species in the horticultural and nursery trade. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental in tropical and subtropical areas for its conspicuous red flowers (Watkins, 1975; Daniel, 1995; Francis, 2005). It is also popular in gardens because it attracts butterflies and hummingbirds that feed on the nectar (Watkins, 1975).

Uses List

Animal feed, fodder, forage

• Invertebrate food

Ornamental

• Potted plant
• Propagation material
• Seed trade

References

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Baker CA; Webster CG; Adkins S, 2012. Odontonema cuspidatum and Psychotria punctata, two new hosts of Cucumber mosaic virus in the United States. Plant Disease, 96(9):1384. http://apsjournals.apsnet.org/loi/pdis

Britton NL; Wilson P, 1925. Botany of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Scientific Survey of Porto Rico & Virgin Islands, Volume 6

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Francis JK, 2005. Odontonema cuspidatum (Nees) Kuntze. Wildland Shrubs of the United States and its Territories: Thamnic Descriptions. General Technical Report IITF-WB-1. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestry and Shrub Sciences Laboratory. http://www.fs.fed.us/global/iitf/pdf/shrubs/Odontonema%20cuspidatum.pdf

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Links to Websites

Contributors

05/03/14 Original text by:

Julissa Rojas-Sandoval, Department of Botany-Smithsonian NMNH, Washington DC, USA

Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, Department of Botany-Smithsonian NMNH, Washington DC, USA

Distribution Maps