Giant sensitive tree (Mimosa pigra)

Giant sensitive tree (Mimosa pigra) is a species of Mimosa in Fabaceae that forms dense shrubs, woody, thorny and widely spread throughout the tropics, especially in wet areas. These legumes have a height of up to 6 m, the stem is greenish in young plants but becomes brown wood when the plant is enlarged.

M. pigra is armed with spines up to 7 mm long on the trunk, bright green leaves and bipinnate where smaller spines stand in the middle 20 to 25 cm long with 5 cm pinnae lengths to 16 pairs, each divided into pairs for lengths of 3 to 8 mm. The leaves fold when touched and the night comes.



Pink flowers 1 cm in diameter. Each flower head produces a group of 10 to 20 seed pods which then break into hairy segments and each contains seeds. Mature seeds are light brown to brown, hard and can remain idle for at least 23 years in sandy soil.

Giant sensitive trees germinate throughout the year on moist soil but do not flood and most germination at the beginning and end of the rainy season. Seedling growth is very fast and flowering after 4 to 12 months. The process from flower buds to mature seeds takes about five weeks.

TAXON

Kingdom Plantae
Phylum Tracheophyta
Subphylum Angiospermae
Class Magnoliopsida
Order Fabales
Family Fabaceae
Subfamily Mimosoideae
Tribe Mimoseae
Genus Mimosa L. in Sp. Pl.: 516 (1753)
Species: Mimosa pigra L. in Cent. Pl. I: 13 (1755)
Variety: Mimosa pigra var. asperata (L.) Zarucchi, Vincent & Gandhi, Mimosa pigra var. dehiscens (Barneby) Glazier & Mackinder, Mimosa pigra var. pigra

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Mimosa asperata var. pigra (L.) Willd. in Sp. Pl., ed. 4. 4: 1035 (1806)

PUBLICATIONS

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Berhaut, J. (1975). Flore illustrée du Sénégal 4: 1-625. Gouvernement du Sénégal, Ministère du développement rural direction des eaux et forêta, Dakar.

Boggan, J. Funck, V. & Kelloff, C. (1997). Checklist of the Plants of the Guianas (Guyana, Surinam, Franch Guiana) ed. 2: 1-238. University of Guyana, Georgetown.

Boudet, G., Lebrun, J.P. & Demange, R. (1986). Catalogue des plantes vasculaires du Mali: 1-465. Etudes d'Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux.

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Brunel, J.F., Hiepo, P. & Scholz, H. (eds.) (1984). Flore Analytique du Togo Phanérogames: 1-751. GTZ, Eschborn.

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Du Puy, D.J., Labat, N.-N., Rabevohitra, R., Villiers, J.-F., Bosser, J. & Moat, J. (2002). The Leguminosae of Madagascar: 1-737. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

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Forero, E. & Castellanos, C. (eds.) (2019). Estudios en Leguminosas Colombianas 3: 1-398. Academia Colombiana de ciencias exactas, físicas y naturales.

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Girmansyah, D. & al. (eds.) (2013). Flora of Bali an annotated checklist: 1-158. Herbarium Bogorensis, Indonesia.

Goodwin, Z.A. & al. (2013). A checklist of the vascular plants of the lowland savannas of Belize, Central America. Phytotaxa 101: 1-119.

Gosline, G., Bidault, E., van der Burgt, X., Cahen, D., Challen, G., Condé, N., Couch, C., Couvreur, T.L.P., Dagallier, L.M.J., Darbyshire, I., Dawson, S., Doré, T.S., Goyder, D., Grall, A., Haba, P., Haba, P., Harris, D., Hind, D.J.N., Jongkind, & al. (2023). A Taxonomically-verified and Vouchered Checklist of the Vascular Plants of the Republic of Guinea. Nature, scientific data 10, Article number: 327: [1]-[12].

Hammel, B.E., Grayum, M.H., Herrera & C. & Zamora, N. (eds.) (2010). Manual de plantas de Costa Rica volumen V. Dicotiledóneas (Clusiaceae-Gunneraceae). Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 119: 1-970. Missouri Botanical Garden.

Idárraga-Piedrahita, A., Ortiz, R.D.C., Callejas Posada, R. & Merello, M. (eds.) (2011). Flora de Antioquia: Catálogo de las Plantas Vasculares 2: 1-939. Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín.

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Jørgensen, P.M. & León-Yánes, S. (eds.) (1999). Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ecuador: 1-1181. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.

Jørgensen, P.M., Nee, M.H. & Beck., S.G. (eds.) (2013). Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Bolivia. Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 127: 1-1741. Missouri Botanical Garden.

Kumar, S. & Sane, P.V. (2003). Legumes of South Asia. A Checklist: 1-536. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Kuo, M.L. (ed.) (2012). Flora of Taiwan, ed. 2, Suppl.: 1-414. Editorial Committee of the Flora of Taiwan, Second Edition, National Taiwan University.

Lebrun, J.-P., Audru, J., Gaston, A. & Mosnier, M. (1972). Catalogue des Plantes Vasculaires du Tchad Méridional: 1-289. Institut d' Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maisons Alfort.

Lebrun, J.P., Toutain, B., Gaston, A. & Boudet, G. (1991). Catalogue des Plantes Vasculaires du Burkina Faso: 1-341. Institut d' Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maisons Alfort.

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Zhu, X.Y., Zhang, R.P. & He, Y.L. (eds.) (2021). An inventory of legume species diversity of Myanmar: 1-297. China Minzu university press.

Zuloaga, F.O., Morrone, O. , Belgrano, M.J., Marticorena, C. & Marchesi, E. (eds.) (2008). Catálogo de las Plantas Vasculares del Cono Sur. Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 107: 1-3348. Missouri Botanical Garden.

da Silva e Silva, W.L., Cajueiro Gurgel, E.S., Moreira dos Santos, J.U. & Falcão da Silva, M. (2013). Inventário e distribuição geográfica de Leguminosae no arquipélago de Marajó, PA, Brazil. Hoehnea 40: 627-647.

de Moura Júnior, E.G. & al. (2015). Updated checklist of aquatic macrophytes from Northern Brazil. Acta Amazonica 45: 111-132.

VERNACULAR NAME

Afrikaans: Raak-my-nie, Afrika-skaambos
Banjar: Susupan gunung
Chinese (simplified): 刺轴含羞草 - 大含羞草
Chinese (traditional): 刺軸含羞木
English: Giant sensitive tree, Giant sensitive plant, Africa sensitive plant, Giant mimosa, Catclaw mimosa
French: Sensitive géante
Indonesian: Kelampis air, Susupan Gunung, Baretan, Baret, Kelampis air, Pohon putri malu
Java: Baretan
Melayu: Baretan
Nyamwezi: Kapele, Kapeli
Polish: Czułek leniwy
Spanish: Árbol sensible, Carpinchera, Zarza negra, Diente de perrito, Moriviví gigante, Zarza, Zarzón
Thai: ไมยราบยักษ์
Tswana: Baswabile
Venda: Mushona
Zulu: Imbuna, Imbune, Umazifisa

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