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Prosopis glandulosa
(tree)
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Taxonomic name:
Prosopis glandulosa
Torr.
Synonyms:
Common names:
honey mesquite (English), mesquite (English), Mesquite-Busch (German), Texas mesquite (English)
Organism type:
tree
Prosopis glandulosa (mesquite) is a perennial, woody, deciduous shrub or small tree. It forms impenetrable thickets that compete strongly with native species for available soil water, suppress grass growth and may reduce understory species diversity.
Description
Multi-stemmed shrub, branches with zigzag shape. Bipinnate leaves generally dark green but can be bluish green, leaflets 5-15 times as long as broad (20mm long). Flowers are yellow and grouped in dense drooping "lamb's tail" spikes. Seed pods bean-like (10-20cm long) with slight constrictions. Spines above axillary bud.
Occurs in:
desert, range/grasslands, riparian zones, ruderal/disturbed, scrub/shrublands
Habitat description
Occurs over climatically diverse regions, grows well on all soil types. Thrives in high temps >38°C. Moderate frost tolerance. Moderate salt tolerance. Pods high in sugar (16%) and protein (12%) and so are sought by animals.
General impacts
Rapidly outcompetes understorey plants resulting in complete loss of grass cover. Erosion is exacerbated by allelopathic affects of ground litter.
Notes
Occurs over climatically diverse regions, grows well on all soil types. Thrives in high temps >38°C. Moderate frost tolerance. Moderate salt tolerance. Pods high in sugar (16%) and protein (12%) and so are sought by animals.
Geographical range
Native range
: Native to SW USA (Texas, Kansas, west to California) and central Mexico and Baja California.
Known introduced range
: It has been introduced to: Saudi Arabia, Burma, India, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, southern Africa and Australia.
Management information
Preventative measures
:
A Risk assessment of
Prosopis
spp.
for Australia was prepared by Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER) using the Australian risk assessment system (Pheloung, 1995). The result is a score of 20 and a recommendation of: reject the plant for import (Australia) or species likely to be a pest (Pacific).
Integrated management
: Chemical and mechanical methods, grazing management and fire can be used in an integrated control program. Timing is very important to maximise effectiveness e.g. low rainfall seasons may lead to low seedling recruitment.
Biological
: Biological control agents have been importated into Australia, two seed-feeders, a leaf-tying moth and a sap-sucking psyllid.
Nutrition
No signficance nutrient requirements.
Reproduction
Seed production and suckering (dormant buds below the ground, stimulated by disturbance).
10's of thousands of seeds per square metre per year, seedling mortality high less than 800 seedlings per hectare after one year
Lifecycle stages
Seeds viable 2-50 years. Maturity 2-5 years. Flowering commences in summer. Seeds mature 35-40 days after flowering. Plants may be deciduous. Seeds germinate after warm temperatures and rain, these conditions may occur only sopradically. Spread facilitated by grazing animals.
This species has been nominated as among 100 of the "World's Worst" invaders
Reviewed by:
Major update under progress
Craig Walton, Senior Policy Officer (Ecologist), Land Protection, Department of Natural Resources and Mines, Queensland, Australia.
Compiled by:
Craig Walton, Senior Policy Officer (Ecologist), Land Protection, Department of Natural Resources and Mines, Queensland, Australia & IUCN/SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG)
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Last Modified:
Wednesday, 13 April 2005
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The Global Invasive Species Database is managed by the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) of the IUCN Species Survival Commission. It was developed as part of the global initiative on invasive species led by the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) and is supported through partnerships with the National Biological Information Infrastructure, Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research and the University of Auckland.
Conditions of use
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