Introduction

Mimosa diplotricha C. Wright ex Sauvalle (= Mimosa invisa Mart. ex Colla) (Mimosaceae) is commonly known as the giant sensitive plant, creeping sensitive plant and nila grass; various local names also exist wherever it has been introduced (Waterhouse, 1994). It is a native of Central America to Brazil (Holm et al., 1977) but has become a serious weed outside its natural range.

Distribution

It has been recorded as an invasive weed in American Samoa, Australia, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, New Caledonia, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna in the Pacific; Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam in Asia; and Mauritius, Nigeria, and Reunion in Africa (Holm et al., 1977; Waterhouse and Norris, 1987; PIER, 2006; Invasive Species Specialist Group website, www.issg.org).

Ecology and biology

Mimosa includes 400–450 species, which are mostly native to Central and South America (Lewis and Elias, 1981). Mimosa diplotricha is widespread in South America, Central America, the West Indies, Mexico, Puerto Rico, parts of Africa, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands (Waterhouse, 1994). It is considered a major weed in pasture, plantations, roadsides, and wet degraded lands and can also be a serious problem in crop areas (Waterhouse, 1994).

Mimosa diplotricha is a shrubby or sprawling annual that sometimes behaves as a perennial vine and forms a dense thicket (PIER, 2006).