Plants native to Tuamotu

We document 86 of the 142 species Kew’s World Checklist records as native to Tuamotu. Native means native: introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where these plants are from, not everywhere they now grow.

Documented 86 Native, per Kew 142 Coverage 61% TDWG TUA

Best documented by photographic coverage

Every documented species 86 native to Tuamotu

SpeciesAuthorityFamily Photographs
Achyranthes aspera L. Amaranthaceae 8
Adiantum hispidulum Sw. Pteridaceae 8
Alyxia stellata Roem. & Schult. Apocynaceae 8
Asplenium australasicum Hook. Aspleniaceae 8
Asplenium obtusatum G.Forst. Aspleniaceae 8
Barringtonia asiatica Kurz Lecythidaceae 8
Canavalia sericea A.Gray Fabaceae 8
Capparis spinosa L. Capparaceae 8
Cassytha filiformis L. Lauraceae 8
Cenchrus caliculatus Cav. Poaceae 8
Centotheca lappacea (L.) Desv. Poaceae 8
Cerbera manghas L. Apocynaceae 8
Christella dentata (Forssk.) Brownsey & Jermy Thelypteridaceae 8
Christella parasitica (L.) H.Lév. Thelypteridaceae 8
Chrysopogon aciculatus (Retz.) Trin. Poaceae 8
Colubrina asiatica Brongn. Rhamnaceae 8
Commelina diffusa Burm.f. Commelinaceae 8
Cordia subcordata Lam. Cordiaceae 8
Cyanthillium cinereum (L.) H.Rob. Asteraceae 8
Cyperus brevifolius (Rottb.) Hassk. Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus cyperoides (L.) Kuntze Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus javanicus Houtt. Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus mindorensis (Steud.) Huygh Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus odoratus L. Cyperaceae 8
Davallia solida (Forst.) Sw. Davalliaceae 8
Dicranopteris linearis (Burm.f.) Underw. Gleicheniaceae 8
Digitaria setigera Roth Poaceae 8
Dodonaea viscosa Jacq. Sapindaceae 8
Erythrina variegata L. Fabaceae 8
Eugenia reinwardtiana (Blume) DC. Myrtaceae 8
Euphorbia atoto G.Forst. Euphorbiaceae 8
Fimbristylis cymosa R.Br. Cyperaceae 8
Gossypium hirsutum L. Malvaceae 8
Grewia prunifolia A.Gray Malvaceae 8
Guettarda speciosa L. Rubiaceae 8
Heliotropium anomalum Hook. & Arn. Heliotropiaceae 8
Heliotropium arboreum (Blanco) Mabb. Heliotropiaceae 8
Hernandia nymphaeifolia (C.Presl) Kubitzki Hernandiaceae 8
Hibiscus tiliaceus L. Malvaceae 8
Hypolepis tenuifolia (Forst.) Bernh. Dennstaedtiaceae 8
Ipomoea littoralis Blume Convolvulaceae 8
Ipomoea pes-caprae (L.) R.Br. Convolvulaceae 8
Ipomoea violacea L. Convolvulaceae 8
Jasminum didymum G.Forst. Oleaceae 8
Korthalsella taenioides (Juss.) Endl. Santalaceae 8
Lepturus repens (G.Forst.) R.Br. Poaceae 8
Lycium carolinianum Walter Solanaceae 8
Microsorum scolopendria (Burm.f.) Copel. Polypodiaceae 8
Microtis unifolia (G.Forst.) Rchb.f. Orchidaceae 8
Miscanthus floridulus (Labill.) Warb. ex K.Schum. & Lauterb. Poaceae 8
Nephrolepis biserrata (Sw.) Schott Nephrolepidaceae 8
Nephrolepis brownii (Desv.) Hovenkamp & Miyam. Nephrolepidaceae 8
Nervilia concolor (Blume) Schltr. Orchidaceae 8
Oplismenus hirtellus (L.) P.Beauv. Poaceae 8
Palhinhaea cernua (L.) Vasc. & Franco Lycopodiaceae 8
Pandanus tectorius Parkinson ex Du Roi Pandanaceae 8
Paspalum orbiculare G.Forst. Poaceae 8
Pemphis acidula J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. Lythraceae 8
Peperomia leptostachya Hook. & Arn. Piperaceae 8
Pipturus argenteus (G.Forst.) Wedd. Urticaceae 8
Pisonia grandis R.Br. Nyctaginaceae 8
Pometia pinnata J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. Sapindaceae 8
Premna serratifolia L. Lamiaceae 8
Psilotum nudum (L.) P.Beauv. Psilotaceae 8
Pyrrosia serpens (G.Forst.) Ching Polypodiaceae 8
Sapindus saponaria L. Sapindaceae 8
Scaevola taccada (Gaertn.) Roxb. Goodeniaceae 8
Sesuvium portulacastrum (L.) L. Aizoaceae 8
Sida fallax Walp. Malvaceae 8
Suriana maritima L. Surianaceae 8
Tacca leontopetaloides (L.) Kuntze Dioscoreaceae 8
Thespesia populnea Sol. ex Corrêa Malvaceae 8
Thuarea involuta (G.Forst.) R.Br. ex Sm. Poaceae 8
Vigna marina (Burm.) Merr. Fabaceae 8
Viscum articulatum Burm.f. Santalaceae 8
Vitex trifolia L. Lamiaceae 8
Ximenia americana L. Olacaceae 8
Boerhavia acutifolia (Choisy) J.W.Moore Nyctaginaceae 7
Ficus prolixa G.Forst. Moraceae 7
Asplenium gibberosum (Forst.) Mett. Aspleniaceae 6
Crateva religiosa G.Forst. Capparaceae 6
Cyclophyllum barbatum (G.Forst.) N.Hallé & J.Florence Rubiaceae 5
Dianella adenanthera (G.Forst.) R.J.F.Hend. Asphodelaceae 4
Laportea ruderalis (G.Forst.) Chew Urticaceae 4
Triumfetta procumbens G.Forst. Malvaceae 4
Ophioglossum reticulatum L. Ophioglossaceae 3

What this page does not tell you

Kew records 56 more species as native to Tuamotu that we do not document. They are real, accepted plants. They have no page here because we could not find three photographs of them licensed for commercial use, and this site publishes no species it cannot show you. That gap is the honest measure of what we are missing, and it is why we print both numbers rather than the flattering one.

This is a checklist of what is native, not a guide to what will grow in your garden, and it carries no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not have those from a source we can cite.

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). Native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country (TUA). Introduced, extinct and doubtful records excluded. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
  2. World Flora Online Plant List. Accepted names, authorities, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  3. iNaturalist. Photographs, restricted to CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA. Retrieved 2026-06-27.