Albizia saman (rain tree)

Pictures

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Picture

Title

Caption

Copyright

Habit

Albizia saman (rain tree); habit, in a grassy paddock. Kau, Hawaii, Hawaii, USA. July 2012.

©Forest & Kim Starr - CC BY 4.0

Habit

Albizia saman (rain tree); habit, roadside tree. Kau, Hawaii, Hawaii, USA. July 2012.

©Forest & Kim Starr - CC BY 4.0

Habit

Albizia saman (rain tree); habit, grown as a street tree. Ala Moana Blvd, Oahu, Hawaii, USA. July 2007.

©Forest & Kim Starr - CC BY 4.0

Foliage and flowers

Albizia saman (rain tree); foliage and flowers. Enchanting Gardens of Kula, Maui, Hawaii, USA. July 2008.

©Forest & Kim Starr - CC BY 4.0

Flowers

Albizia saman (rain tree); flowers, buds and foliage. Puerto de Aseses, Granada, Nicaragua. December 2011.

©Dick Culbert/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Habit

Albizia saman (rain tree); habit, showing trunk and bark (note Spathacea in crotch). Old Maui High School Hamakuapoko Paia, Maui, Hawaii, USA. June 2009.

©Forest & Kim Starr - CC BY 4.0

Identity

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Preferred Scientific Name

Samanea saman (Jacq.) Merr.

Preferred Common Name

rain tree

Other Scientific Names

Albizia saman (Jacq.) F. Muell.
Calliandra saman (Jacq.) Griseb.
Enterolobium saman (Jacq.) Prain ex King
Feuilleea saman (Jacq.) Kuntze
Inga saman (Jacq.) Willd.
Microsphaeropsis pittospori
Mimosa saman Jacq.
Pithecellobium saman (Jacq.) Benth.
Zygia saman (Jacq.) A. Lyons

International Common Names

English: crow bean tree; monkey pod
Spanish: samán
French: abre de pluie

Local Common Names

Central America: carreto; cenízaro; cenízero; dormilón; zarza; zorra
Bangladesh: rendi koroi
Colombia: campano; genízaro; samaguare
Cuba: algarrobo; algarrobo del pais
Dominican Republic: guannegoul
Germany: Regenbaum
Grenada: coco tamarind; cow tamarind
Guyana: French tamarind
Haiti: guannegoul; samán
India: belati-siris; guango; majhamaram; nidra-ganneru; thoongh moonjii
Indonesia: Dutch tamarind; kihujan; mungur; slubin; trembesi
Italy: albero delle pioggia
Jamaica: guango
Netherlands: regenboom
Peru: huacamayo chico
Puerto Rico: crow bean tree; dormilón; giant thibet; guango
Thailand: monkey pod
Trinidad and Tobago: coco tamarind; cow tamarind; samán guerra
United States Virgin Islands: giant thibet; licorice
Venezuela: campano; carabelí; coují; lara; uero

EPPO code

PIFSA (Albizia saman)

Summary of Invasiveness

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S. saman possesses some of the characters of other species known to have become invasive, e.g. prolific seeding, livestock as effective dispersers of seed, nitrogen fixation and adaptation to a variety of soil types. However, reference sources are somewhat conflicting as to the degree of naturalization and invasion, especially where it spreads on disturbed sites often in Pacific and Caribbean islands. It is also known to be present in Kenya and Malawi. Binggeli (1999) classified this species as only moderately invasive.

Taxonomic Tree

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Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Spermatophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Dicotyledonae
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Mimosoideae
Genus: Albizia
Species: Albizia saman

Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature

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Generic delimitation within the tribe Ingeae of family Fabaceae, subfamily Mimosoideae has long been known to present particular difficulties. This has resulted in a tumultuous taxonomic history, extreme lack of nomenclatural stability, and successive transfers of species such as Samanea saman from genus to genus (Barneby and Grimes, 1996). S. saman has been placed in no fewer than nine different genera by different authors, making this a notoriously confusing species for foresters. It has often been referred to as Pithecellobium saman or Albizia saman in recent years. A new generic system for the Ingeae, including a detailed taxonomic account of Samanea, has recently been completed (Barneby and Grimes, 1996), clarifying the identity of Samanea saman and providing a more stable classification for the future.

Samanea is a small genus of three species. S. saman is, however, sharply defined and, in most features, a stable species. The silvicultural potential of the closely related S. tubulosa and S. inopinata remains unknown.

Description

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S. saman is a medium-sized or large tree of potentially great size, often reaching 25-30 m tall, occasionally 45 m, with a short stout bole to 2-3 m dbh and a wide, low, spreading crown, often twice as wide as the tree is high. It is a stately tree, with heavy, nearly horizontal branches and an umbrella-shaped crown. One notable old S. saman tree near Government House in Trinidad was recorded to shade approximately a hectare, and reach 50 m in height, a stem 2.6 m in diameter, with a crown diameter of 60 m (Allen and Allen, 1981; Raintree, 1987). The bark is grey-brown, rough and furrowed into ridges. A full botanical description is provided by Barneby and Grimes (1996). Leaves are large, 6-25 mm long x 3-8 cm wide, bipinnate, with 3-6 pairs of pinnae per leaf, 6-9 pairs of leaflets per pinna and large leaflets, 24-62 mm long x 10-25 mm wide. Leaflets are unequal in size, becoming larger towards the distal end of the pinnae. The new growth and leaf rachis are covered in short, velvety, tawny pubescence. The leaflets are rhombic-oblong or elliptic in shape, unequal at the base, dark olive-green, glabrous and slightly glossy above, dull grey-green and hairy below. The flowers are arranged in loose umbelliform heads, which develop in groups of 2-5 in the axils of leaves on actively growing shoots. The terminal or central flower on each head is sessile and enlarged compared to the peripheral flowers. The exposed and conspicuous stamen filaments are bright or pale pink and showy. The fruits are broadly linear, compressed pods, 10-22 cm long x 1.5-2.2 cm wide x 0.5-1 cm thick. They are green and fleshy when unripe, and turn dark blackish-brown when ripe. The thick mesocarp is filled with dry pitch-like, sweet, nutritious pulp. The pods are indehiscent and contain 5-10 mature seeds, 8-11.5 mm long x 5-7.5 mm wide.

Plant Type

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Broadleaved
Perennial
Seed propagated
Tree
Woody

Distribution

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S. saman is extensively cultivated both within and outside its presumed natural range in northern South America and Central America. Its present-day distribution in the Americas is also in part, probably generated by seed dispersal following introduction of horses and cattle (Janzen and Martin, 1982). Its dissemination in the West Indies certainly followed the growth of the cattle industry, as shipments of cattle from Venezuela were often accompanied by bags of S. saman pods for animal feed during the voyage (Pertchik and Pertchik, 1951). This means that the true natural range can no longer be demonstrated without doubt (Barneby and Grimes, 1996). The native range recorded in the distribution table is the presumed natural range based on field observations by the author, and includes only Central and northern South America, from Mexico to Colombia and Venezuela. Streets (1962) reported S. saman being introduced to Trinidad from Venezuela before 1860, supporting this view. This is, however, contradicted in part by a number of other authorities. For example, ILDIS (2002) includes presume nativity also in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana and Peru (though origin unknown in Ecuador), and unknown origin in mainland Central America and Caribbean islands.

Distribution Table

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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.

Last updated: 10 Jan 2020

Continent/Country/Region	Distribution	Origin	First Reported	Invasive	Planted	Reference	Notes
Africa
Benin	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
Burundi	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Cameroon	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Central African Republic	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Congo, Democratic Republic of the	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Congo, Republic of the	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Côte d'Ivoire	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Equatorial Guinea	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Gabon	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Gambia	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Ghana	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Guinea	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Guinea-Bissau	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Kenya	Present	Introduced				Witt and Luke (2017) ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Liberia	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Madagascar	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Malawi	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Mauritius	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
Mozambique	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Nigeria	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Réunion	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) PIER (2002)
Rwanda	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
São Tomé and Príncipe	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
Seychelles	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) PIER (2002)
Sierra Leone	Present	Introduced				Amara and Mansaray (1989) ILDIS (2002)
Sudan	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
Tanzania	Present	Introduced				Witt and Luke (2017) ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
-Zanzibar Island	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Togo	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Uganda	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Zambia	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Zimbabwe	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Asia
Bangladesh	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated)	Original citation: Serajuddoula and et al. (1995)
Bhutan	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
Brunei	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Cambodia	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
China	Present					CABI (Undated a)	Present based on regional distribution.
-Fujian	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Guangdong	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Guangxi	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Hong Kong	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
India	Present	Introduced	1880			Troup and Joshi (1983) ILDIS (2002)
-Andaman and Nicobar Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Andhra Pradesh	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Assam	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Bihar	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Gujarat	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Karnataka	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Kerala	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Madhya Pradesh	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Maharashtra	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Odisha	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Tamil Nadu	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Tripura	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Uttar Pradesh	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-West Bengal	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Indonesia	Present	Introduced				Djogo (1997) ILDIS (2002)	First reported: 1870s
-Irian Jaya	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
-Java	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Maluku Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Sulawesi	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Sumatra	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Laos	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Macau	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Malaysia	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002)
-Peninsular Malaysia	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Sabah	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Sarawak	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Maldives	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) PIER (2002)
Myanmar	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Pakistan	Present	Introduced			Planted	Athar and Mahmood (1985)
Philippines	Present	Introduced				Merrill (1912) ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)	First reported: pre-1815
Singapore	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Sri Lanka	Present	Introduced				Streets (1962) ILDIS (2002)	First reported: c. 1850
Taiwan	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Thailand	Present	Introduced				Akkasaeng et al. (1989) ILDIS (2002)
Vietnam	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
North America
Antigua and Barbuda	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Aruba	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Barbados	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Belize	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Bermuda	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
British Virgin Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Cayman Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Costa Rica	Present	Native				Janzen (1982) ILDIS (2002)
Cuba	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Curaçao	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Dominica	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Dominican Republic	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
El Salvador	Present	Native			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Grenada	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Guadeloupe	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Guatemala	Present	Native			Planted	World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Haiti	Present	Introduced				Timyan (1996) ILDIS (2002)
Honduras	Present	Native			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Jamaica	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Martinique	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Mexico	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Montserrat	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Netherlands Antilles	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Nicaragua	Present	Native			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Panama	Present	Native			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Puerto Rico	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) CABI (Undated)
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Saint Lucia	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Saint Pierre and Miquelon	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Trinidad and Tobago	Present	Introduced	1860		Planted	Streets (1962)
Turks and Caicos Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
U.S. Virgin Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
United States	Present					CABI (Undated a)	Present based on regional distribution.
-Florida	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Hawaii	Present	Introduced	1847	Invasive		Neal (1965) Little and Skolmen (1989) ILDIS (2002) CABI (Undated)
Oceania
American Samoa	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Australia	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
-Northern Territory	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Queensland	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Christmas Island	Present	Introduced				PIER (2002)
Cook Islands	Present	Introduced				PIER (2002)
Federated States of Micronesia	Present	Introduced				CABI (Undated)	Original citation: Space and Falanruw (1999)
Fiji	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) PIER (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
French Polynesia	Present	Introduced			Planted	PIER (2002)
Guam	Present	Introduced				PIER (2002)
Marshall Islands	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) PIER (2002)
New Caledonia	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
New Zealand	Present	Introduced				World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Niue	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) CABI (Undated)
Northern Mariana Islands	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) CABI (Undated)
Palau	Present	Introduced				PIER (2002)
Papua New Guinea	Present	Introduced				Verdcourt (1979) Brook et al. (1992) ILDIS (2002)
Samoa	Present	Introduced				PIER (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Solomon Islands	Present	Introduced			Planted	World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Tonga	Present	Introduced				World Agroforestry Centre (2002) CABI (Undated)
Vanuatu	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
South America
Argentina	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Bolivia	Present	Introduced			Planted	World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Brazil	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
-Acre	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Alagoas	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Amapa	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Amazonas	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Bahia	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Espirito Santo	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Fernando de Noronha	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Goias	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Mato Grosso	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Minas Gerais	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Para	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Rio de Janeiro	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Rondonia	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Roraima	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
-Sao Paulo	Present	Introduced			Planted	CABI (Undated b)
Colombia	Present	Native			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Ecuador	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
French Guiana	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Guyana	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Peru	Present	Introduced				ILDIS (2002) World Agroforestry Centre (2002)
Suriname	Present	Introduced			Planted	ILDIS (2002)
Venezuela	Present	Native				Escalante (1997) ILDIS (2002)

History of Introduction and Spread

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S. saman was one of the first roadside exotic trees to be widely planted in many tropical countries and it is now so widely cultivated, particularly in South-East and south Asia, that it is often mistaken as native to that area. It was planted principally as a shade or ornamental tree in streets, parks and in coffee plantations. It was introduced from Mexico to the Philippines before 1815 aboard one of the annual Spanish government galleons which sailed between Acapulco and Manila between 1521 and 1815 (Merrill, 1912). Historical records also suggest an early introduction to many other countries: 1847 to Hawaii from Mexico (Neal, 1965; Little and Skolmen, 1989); in around 1850 to Sri Lanka, from West Africa (Streets, 1962); in the 1870s to Indonesia (Djogo, 1997) and 1880 to India (Troup and Joshi, 1983). The abundance, extent of naturalization and wide distribution of S. saman in many countries such as Papua New Guinea (Verdcourt, 1979), Indonesia and southern India, along with numerous records of extremely large, stately, and presumably old (>100 years) trees, are further witness to its early pantropical introduction.

S. saman is naturalized, and in the southern foothills Puerto Rico and on neighbouring Vieques, but by 1990 was only localized, occurring over less than 10 hectares (Francis and Liogier, 1991). It is described as common or weedy in several Pacific islands; American Samoa (Space and Flynn, 1999), Rota (Space et al., 2000) and Micronesia (Space and Falanruw, 1999), and common, weedy or cultivated in Niue (Space and Flynn, 2000), Tonga (Space and Flynn, 2001) and Chuuk (Space et al., 2000); and naturalized in disturbed sites in Hawaii (Smith, 1998) and Fiji (PIER, 2002). However a risk assessment conducted by University of Hawaii (see PIER, 2002), did not predict that S. saman would become a pest.

Risk of Introduction

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Classification of S. saman as invasive or naturalized is ambigious among authors, and none of the sources listed provided unequivocal data on impacts of the species where introduced. A precautionary approach should be adopted therefore, with attention being paid to the similarity between the environmental/climatic character of regions where S. saman is reported naturalized and that of the proposed site of introduction. However, it is noted that this species has already been widely introduced and so any risk is likely to be associated with existing plantings. Therefore, monitoring of introduction sites for signs of invasiveness may be prudent.

Habitat

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The native habitat of S. saman is dry forest and grass savannah (World Agroforestry Centre, 2002), or at the margins of seasonally dry deciduous and semi-deciduous forest as well as moister evergreen woodland and savannah. In its exotic range this species commonly naturalizes on disturbed areas e.g. road verges, riverbanks, and forest areas (PIER, 2002).

Habitat List

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Category	Sub-Category	Habitat	Presence	Status
Terrestrial	Managed	Rail / roadsides	Present, no further details	Harmful (pest or invasive)
Terrestrial	Natural / Semi-natural	Natural forests	Present, no further details	Harmful (pest or invasive)
Terrestrial	Natural / Semi-natural	Riverbanks	Present, no further details	Harmful (pest or invasive)

Biology and Ecology

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In many respects S. saman is similar to its close relative, the ear-pod tree, Enterolobium cyclocarpum. General reviews of S. saman are provided by Streets (1962), Allen and Allen (1981), National Academy of Sciences (1979), Raintree (1987), Little and Skolmen (1989), Little and Wadsworth (1989), and Roshetko (1995).

Genetics

There have been few, if any, attempts to systematically explore, evaluate and improve the genetic material used in planting of S. saman. Currently used seed sources are derived from land race material comprising, in most areas, an extremely narrow genetic base. Many early introductions are known to be from one or a few trees. For example, two seeds of S. saman were originally introduced to Hawaii from Mexico in 1847 (Little and Skolmen, 1989). No comprehensive provenance studies have been attempted although two different seed sources (e.g. Hughes and Pottinger, 1997) were collected and tested in a small number of trials. Two seed orchards comprising 46 and 50 half-sib families have been established in Honduras (Mejia, 1997). Little or nothing is known about patterns of genetic diversity in S. saman.

Physiology and Phenology

Flowering and reproductive biology of S. saman have been observed in natural populations in Central America and trees begin fruiting from an early age. Trees bear tens of thousands of small flowers during the late dry season. Pod set is low with fruit:flower ratios of <0.001 (Bawa and Buckley, 1989). S. saman is generally deciduous, but may be evergreen where planted in wet forest areas or as an ornamental in humid climates, when flowering occurs towards the end of the dry season as the tree refoliates. Tiny immature pods persist for 8-10 months before expanding, ripening and falling, nearly a year after flowering, in the mid dry season (Janzen, 1982, 1983). Pods are shed indehiscent.

Rapid early growth of S. saman on some sites, e.g. in Papua New Guinea (Brook et al., 1992), is comparable with other fast-growing legumes such as Acacia angustissima, A. auriculiformis, Gliricidia sepium, Leucaena leucocephala and Schleinitzia novoguineensis. However, most trials suggest that early growth is generally slower than commonly planted fast-growing species, e.g. Rourke and Suardika (1990) in Timor (Indonesia); Glover and Heuveldop (1985) in Costa Rica; Hossain et al. (1992) in Bangladesh; Jama et al. (1989) in Kenya; Akkasaeng et al. (1989) in Thailand. S. saman does not appear to rank amongst the fastest-growing tropical trees, and trees with a dbh of >100 cm are generally estimated to be >100 years old.

Reproductive Biology

There is a hermaphroditic reproductive system (World Agroforestry Centre, 2002). Flowers are believed to be pollinated by large night-flying hawk and noctuid moths, the central, enlarged flower of the inflorescence providing nectar. Pollen is dispersed as large 32-grained polyads and the species is thought to be predominantly outcrossing (Bawa and Buckley, 1989). Flowering occurs towards the end of the dry season and the small immature pods persist for 8-10 months before expanding, ripening and falling nearly a year after flowering in the mid dry season (Janzen, 1982, 1983). There are between 4,400 and 7,700 seeds/kg. The seed coat is hard.

Environmental Requirements

S. saman is a truly tropical species, intolerant of frost. It thrives in both the seasonally dry and wet tropics (Allen and Allen, 1981; Raintree, 1987; Little and Wadsworth, 1989; Djogo, 1997) but is faster-growing where rainfall is >1000 mm. A modified description of climatic requirements was prepared by CSIRO (Booth and Jovanovic, 2000). The mean annual rainfall is estimated to be 600 - 3000mm, with a dry season duration of 0 - 6 months. S. saman needs well-drained alluvial, fertile, neutral to moderately acid (>pH 4.6) soils for best growth (Franco et al., 1995), but can also tolerate heavy clays (vertisols) and infertile, or seasonally waterlogged soils. It grows from sea level of to 1500 m altitude.

Associations

S. saman has the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen. Trees have been shown to nodulate effectively in Hawaii, Malaysia and the Philippines with a wide range of strains of Rhizobium (Allen and Allen, 1981).

Latitude/Altitude Ranges

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Latitude North (°N)	Latitude South (°S)	Altitude Lower (m)	Altitude Upper (m)
15	3	0	1500

Air Temperature

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Parameter	Lower limit	Upper limit
Absolute minimum temperature (ºC)	8
Mean annual temperature (ºC)	20	28
Mean maximum temperature of hottest month (ºC)	24	35
Mean minimum temperature of coldest month (ºC)	15	22

Rainfall

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Parameter	Lower limit	Upper limit	Description
Dry season duration	0	6	number of consecutive months with <40 mm rainfall
Mean annual rainfall	600	3000	mm; lower/upper limits

Rainfall Regime

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Bimodal
Summer

Soil Tolerances

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Soil drainage

free
seasonally waterlogged

Soil reaction

acid
neutral

Soil texture

heavy
medium

Notes on Natural Enemies

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A number of minor insect pests affect S. saman in different areas, but none of these have so far caused serious problems. Two psyllid insects, Heteropsylla cubana and Psylla acacia-baileyanae [Acizzia acaciaebaileyanae], are minor defoliators causing curling of leaves, minor defoliation, stunted shoot growth and development of numerous branches where young shoots die back (Braza, 1987; 1990; Braza and Calilunga, 1981). In the native range, S. saman resprout shoots from cut stumps often have clusters of bright red, orange and blue-black nymphs of a coreid bug feeding on the shoot tips, leafcutter ants occasionally harvest some leaves, and howler monkeys eat flowers and young leaves (Janzen, 1983). The bean maggot, Hylemya platura [Delia platura] infests cotyledons of S. saman seedlings and may kill them in nurseries in Haiti (Timyan, 1996). Seeds of S. saman in Costa Rica are predated by two bruchid beetles, Merobruchus columbinus and Stator limbatus which oviposit on the fruits as they reach full size and may kill 50-70% of the seeds (Janzen, 1977). In Costa Rica, parrots may harvest up to a third of the expanded green fruits of S. saman (Janzen, 1982).

Means of Movement and Dispersal

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In the native range, S. saman seeds are dispersed by rodents, tapirs, peccaries, cattle and horses, which eat the pods. Whenever livestock are around fruits never accumulate beneath the tree. This species has been widely planted in agroforestry systems as a shade tree leading to its intentional international distribution and it has been so widely cultivated that the precise native range is now uncertain.

Impact Summary

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Category	Impact
Animal/plant collections	None
Animal/plant products	None
Biodiversity (generally)	Negative
Crop production	None
Environment (generally)	Negative
Fisheries / aquaculture	None
Forestry production	None
Human health	None
Livestock production	None
Native fauna	None
Native flora	None
Rare/protected species	None
Tourism	None
Trade/international relations	None
Transport/travel	Negative

Impact

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The large crown and heavy branches are susceptible to hurricane damage and can be top-heavy and dangerous near houses, while the far-reaching root system can lift foundations and road surfaces, making it an unsuitable urban amenity tree (Allen and Allen, 1981; Little and Wadsworth, 1989). It can also be messy as an ornamental tree, dropping sticky flower parts and pods on parked cars (Little and Skolmen, 1989). However, there are no recorded economic impacts resulting from invasion of young trees in the literature.

Environmental Impact

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There are reports of allelopathic effects caused by sap which exudes and drips from injured limbs, causing damage to grass or other understorey plants (Magnus and Seaforth, 1965), although this appears to be a localized problem. This species fixes atmospheric nitrogen and the nutritional status of soil is therefore likely to increase.

Risk and Impact Factors

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Invasiveness

Proved invasive outside its native range
Highly adaptable to different environments
Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc
Highly mobile locally
Has high reproductive potential
Has propagules that can remain viable for more than one year

Impact outcomes

Damaged ecosystem services
Ecosystem change/ habitat alteration

Likelihood of entry/control

Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately

Uses

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S. saman has been most widely planted as a shade, ornamental and roadside tree. Its canopy, with crowns of great diameter is unsurpassed for shade in silvopastoral systems, parks or roadsides. In addition, the pink flowers add to its value as an ornamental.

The wood of S. saman is strong, durable or very durable, with a light yellow sapwood and rich dark chocolate-brown heartwood. The rich colour and beautiful but subtle grain of the heartwood, resembling black walnut (Juglans nigra), makes wood from larger trees highly prized for furniture (e.g. in Trinidad and Malaysia), panelling, decorative veneers, turnery, platters, and other handicrafts. In Hawaii and Thailand the wood is used to make the famous, albeit mis-named, 'monkey-pod' bowls. The wood is often very cross-grained, making it difficult to work when dry, though remains easy to work when green. The wood is also used for fencing, construction timber, plywood, making crates, boats, and cart wheels made from single cross-sections of the thickest trunks which are said to be very durable and were a common sight on two-wheeled oxcarts in parts of Central America (Standley and Steyermark, 1946). The wood is particularly important in Zulia State in Venezuela where it comprised >80% of the timber produced between 1982 and 1988 (Escalante, 1997). The wood also makes good quality fuelwood (Ryan, 1994) and charcoal (Roshetko, 1995). S. saman trees resprout vigorously and can be managed for fuelwood by pollarding in agricultural areas, as in the Philippines (Raintree, 1987).

The mesocarp of the pod of S. saman contains a sweet nutritious pulp which smells of honey when the pods are broken and which contains 12-18% crude protein (Chicco et al., 1973; Escalante, 1985; 1997) and is highly digestible (40% digestibility), making the pods a good source of proteins, carbohydrates and minerals for livestock. The pods, which are produced in the middle of the dry season, may equal good quality hay in nutritive value and are avidly consumed by cattle, goats pigs and other herbivores. The pods can also be dried and milled into a meal that makes an excellent animal feed, which is exported on a small scale in some South American countries. As a prime source of dry season feed and an unsurpassed shade tree, S. saman is one of the foremost trees to be incorporated into silvopastoral systems in the seasonally dry tropical zones of northern South America (especially Venezuela) (Escalante, 1985; 1997) and Central America. The leaves are not widely used for livestock fodder, but have been reported to be of high quality (Larbi et al., 1996) with 22-28% crude protein (Norton, 1994), no detectable tannins and high in vitro dry matter digestibility (Ahn et al., 1989).

The sticky sweet-flavoured pulp of the pods is often eaten by children and can be used in fruit drinks. S. saman is an important lac host plant in, for example, Thailand. It is also a good honey plant (Verdcourt, 1979; Roshetko, 1995). Although S. saman bark lacks tannin, it does yield an inferior gum (Allen and Allen, 1981).

Uses List

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Animal feed, fodder, forage

Fodder/animal feed
Invertebrate food for lac/wax insects

Environmental

Agroforestry
Shade and shelter
Soil improvement

Fuels

Charcoal
Fuelwood

General

Ornamental

Human food and beverage

Honey/honey flora

Materials

Carved material
Dye/tanning
Miscellaneous materials
Wood/timber

Wood Products

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Boats

Charcoal

Containers

Crates

Furniture

Sawn or hewn building timbers

Beams
Carpentry/joinery (exterior/interior)
Engineering structures
For heavy construction
For light construction
Wall panelling

Veneers

Woodware

Turnery
Wood carvings

Prevention and Control

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Due to the variable regulations around (de)registration of pesticides, your national list of registered pesticides or relevant authority should be consulted to determine which products are legally allowed for use in your country when considering chemical control. Pesticides should always be used in a lawful manner, consistent with the product's label.

No information on the control of S. saman is available from the published literature.

References

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Distribution References

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Amara D S, Mansaray S D, 1989. Fast-growing trees for agroforestry in Sierra Leone. In: Trees for development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Proceedings of a regional seminar held by the International Foundation for Science (IFS), ICRAF House, Nairobi, Kenya, February 20-25, 1989. [Trees for development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Proceedings of a regional seminar held by the International Foundation for Science (IFS), ICRAF House, Nairobi, Kenya, February 20-25, 1989.], Stockholm, Sweden: International Foundation for Science (IFS). 58-65.

Athar M, Mahmood A, 1985. Qualitative study of the nodulating ability of legumes of Pakistan. List 3. Tropical Agriculture, UK. 62 (1), 49-51.

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Escalante E, 1997. Saman (Albizia saman) in agroforestry systems in Venezuela. [Proceedings of an International Workshop on Albizia and Paraserianthes species. Forest, Farm and Community Tree Research Reports (Special Issue)], [ed. by Zabala NQ]. Morrilton, USA: Winrock International. 93-97.

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Janzen DH, 1982. Cenízero tree (Leguminosae: Pithecellobium saman) delayed fruit development in Costa Rican deciduous forest. In: American Journal of Botany, 69 1269-1276.

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Merrill E D, 1912. Notes on the flora of Manila with special reference to the introduced element. Philippine Journal of Sciences, Botany. 145-208.

Neal MC, 1965. In gardens of Hawaii. Special Publication 50., Honolulu, Hawaii, USA: Bernice P. Bishop Museum Press. 924 pp.

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Streets R J, 1962. Exotic forest trees in the British Commonwealth. [ed. by Champion Sir H]. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press. xiii + 765 pp.

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Website	URL	Comment
GISD/IASPMR: Invasive Alien Species Pathway Management Resource and DAISIE European Invasive Alien Species Gateway	https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.m93f6	Data source for updated system data added to species habitat list.

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Albizia saman (rain tree)

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