''Schizostachyum glaucifolium'', common name Polynesian ohe,
is a species of
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
.
Distribution
This species is native to the South-Central Pacific, from the
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands ( ; or ' or ' ; Marquesan language, Marquesan: ' (North Marquesan language, North Marquesan) and ' (South Marquesan language, South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcano, volcanic islands in ...
and
Society Islands
The Society Islands ( , officially ; ) are an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean that includes the major islands of Tahiti, Mo'orea, Moorea, Raiatea, Bora Bora and Huahine. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country ...
in
French Polynesia
French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...
, as well as in the Southwestern Pacific in the
Samoan Islands
The Samoan Islands () are an archipelago covering in the central Pacific Ocean, South Pacific, forming part of Polynesia and of the wider region of Oceania. Political geography, Administratively, the archipelago comprises all of the Samoa, Indep ...
and
Fiji
Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
.
It is an introduced species in Hawaii.
Habitat
This species prefers tropical or subtropical climates.
[Bambooland]
/ref> It can be found mainly along the banks of rivers and streams and on hillsides, at an elevation of above sea level.[
]
Description
''Schizostachyum glaucifolium'' can reach a typical height of and a culm diameter of . This evergreen clump-forming bamboo shows thin walls, long internodes and yellow woody culms with green stripes.[Useful tropical plants]
/ref>
Human culture
These bamboos have been used in by ancient Polynesians in present day French Polynesia
French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...
and Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...
for its many uses (baskets, mats, musical instruments, small containers, fishing rods, etc.).[
]Samoans
Samoans or Samoan people () are the Indigenous Polynesian people of the Samoan Islands, an archipelago in Polynesia, who speak the Samoan language. The group's home islands are politically and geographically divided between the Independent S ...
consider its (known as ''ʻofe'' in Samoan) shoots as a sign of misfortune and doom.
Importance
On the French Polynesian island of Mo'orea, thickets of these bamboo are likely the exclusive breeding habitat of the Moorea reed warbler
Moorea reed warbler (''Acrocephalus longirostris'') is a species of songbird in the genus '' Acrocephalus''. Formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage (Sylviidae), it is now in the newly recognized marsh warbler family Acrocephalidae. ...
. Development, overharvesting, and the invasive Miconia
''Miconia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the glory bush family, Melastomataceae, native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas. The species are mostly shrubs and small to medium-sized trees up to 15 m tall. The generic name ...
have severely depleted these thickets, and the warbler is now critically endangered
An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...
.
See also
*Domesticated plants and animals of Austronesia
One of the major human migration events was the maritime settlement of the islands of the Indo-Pacific by the Austronesian peoples, believed to have started from at least 5,500 to 4,000 BP (3500 to 2000 BCE). These migrations were accompani ...
References
Further reading
*Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. ''Food and feed crops of the United States,'' ed. 2.
*Ohrnberger, D. 1999. ''The bamboos of the world.''
*Parham, J. W. 1972. ''Plants of the Fiji islands,'' revised ed.
*Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. ''Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i.''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7431630
Bambusoideae
Grasses of Oceania
Flora of the Marquesas Islands
Flora of Samoa
Flora of the Society Islands
Austronesian agriculture