''Zanthoxylum spinosum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae () is a family (biology), family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in Bo ...

, known by the common name Biscayne prickly-ash. It is native to the West Caribbean, including

South Florida South Florida, sometimes colloquially shortened to SoFlo, is the Regions of the United States#Florida, southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the two others are ...

and the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

, and

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

.''Zanthoxylum coriaceum''.
NatureServe. This species is a

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

or tree growing up to 7 meters tall, covered in prickles. The leaves are up to 18 centimeters long and are divided into several leaflets. Flowers are borne in cymes, each with three

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s and three petals. The round, glandular fruits are borne in clusters.''Zanthoxylum coriaceum''.
Center for Plant Conservation. This plant grows on coastal

hammocks A hammock, from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno and Arawak , is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swinging, sleeping, or resting. It normally consists of one or more cloth panels, or a wov ...

, beaches, maritime woodlands and scrub, with a rocky substrate contains

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

. Associated species include ''

Metopium toxiferum ''Metopium toxiferum'', the poisonwood, Florida poisontree, coral sumac, or hog gum, is a species of flowering tree in the cashew or sumac family, Anacardiaceae, that is native to the American Neotropics. It produces the irritant urushiol muc ...

'', ''

Coccoloba uvifera ''Coccoloba uvifera'' is a species of tree and flowering plant in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Its common names include seagrape and baygrape. It is native to coastal beaches throughout tropical America and the Caribbean. It has edible fru ...

'', ''

Ardisia escallonioides ''Ardisia escallonioides'', the Island marlberry, is a plant species native to the West Indies and neighboring areas. It has been reported from Barbados, Bermuda, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Florida. ''Ardisia es ...

'', ''

Guapira discolor ''Guapira'' is a genus of Neotropical shrubs in four o'clock family.Psychotria nervosa ''Psychotria nervosa'', also known as Seminole balsamo or wild coffee, is a shade tolerant medium-sized shrub native to Florida as well as the West Indies and Central and South America. It produces a "small, red, ellipsoid fruit" that resembles ...

''. This species may act as host to ''

Toxoptera citricida ''Toxoptera citricida'' ( syn. ''Toxoptera citricidus'') is a species of aphid known by the common names brown citrus aphid, black citrus aphid, and oriental citrus aphid. It is a pest of citrus and vector for the pathogenic plant virus citrus ...

'', the brown citrus aphid.

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15394699 spinosum Taxa named by Olof Swartz