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National Invasive Species Information Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Home / Aquatic Invasives / Aquatic Plants / Melaleuca

Melaleuca

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Melaleuca
Melaleuca, plants - Photo by Min B. Rayamajhi; USDA, Agricultural Research Service
Scientific Name: 

Melaleuca quinquenervia (Cav.) S. T. Blake (ITIS)

Common Name: 

Melaleuca, punktree, naiouli, cajeput tree, paper bark, broadleaf paper bark, broadleaf teatree, paperbark teatree, bottlebrush tree

Native To: 

Australia (Turner et al. 1997)

Date of U.S. Introduction: 

Early 1900s (Turner et al. 1997)

Means of Introduction: 

Used as an ornamental and for erosion control (Turner et al. 1997)

Impact: 

Degrades wetlands in several ways, including altering fire regimes, water table depth, vertical structure of plant communities, recruitment of native species, and light availability (Center et al. 2012)

Distribution / Maps / Survey Status

Early Detection & Distribution Mapping System (EDDMapS) - Melaleuca
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
Provides state, county, point and GIS data. Maps can be downloaded and shared.

Federally Regulated

Noxious Weeds Program
USDA. APHIS. Plant Protection and Quarantine.

Includes species listed as a Federal Noxious Weed under the Plant Protection Act, which makes it illegal in the U.S. to import or transport between States without a permit.

Images

Google Images - Melaleuca
Google.
Invasive.org - Melaleuca
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.

Videos

YouTube - Melaleuca Trees in South Florida

Google. YouTube; University of Florida. IFAS. Lee County Extension.

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Melaleuca.

Partnership
Federal Noxious Weed Disseminules of the U.S. - Fact Sheet: Melaleuca quinquenervia

USDA. APHIS. PPQ. Center for Plant Health Science and Technology; California Department of Food and Agriculture.

Global Invasive Species Database - Melaleuca quinquenervia (tree)
IUCN. Species Survival Commission. Invasive Species Specialist Group.
Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States - Melaleuca
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
Invasive Species Compendium - Melaleuca quinquenervia
CAB International.
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER) - Melaleuca quinquenervia
USDA. FS. Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry.
TAME Melaleuca

University of Florida. IFAS. TAME Melaleuca.

TAME Melaleuca (collaborative effort between U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service and University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, South Florida Water Management District, and others)
Texas Invasives Database - Melaleuca quinquenervia
TexasInvasives.org.
The Quiet Invasion: A Guide to Invasive Species of the Galveston Bay Area - Melaleuca, punktree, cajeput, Australian paperback

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Galveston Bay Estuary Program; Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC).

Federal Government
Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) - Melaleuca quinquenervia
USDA. FS. Rocky Mountain Research Station. Fire Sciences Laboratory.
Indian River Lagoon Species Inventory - Melaleuca quinquenervia

Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian Marine Station at Fort Pierce.

PLANTS Database - Punktree
USDA. NRCS. National Plant Data Center.
U.S. National Plant Germplasm System - Melaleuca quinquenervia

USDA. ARS. National Genetic Resources Program. GRIN-Global.

State and Local Government
Noxious Weeds - Melaleuca quinquenervia, Melaleuca

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Division of Plant Industry.

Weed Alerts: Melaleuca
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Academic
EDIS Topic - Melaleuca Management

University of Florida. Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension.

Electronic Data Information Source - publication resources
Introduced Species Summary Project - Australian Paperbark
Columbia University. Center for Environmental Research and Conservation.
Plant Profile: Melaleuca quinquenervia

University of Florida. IFAS. Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.

Citations