Kauaʻi record · kba_plant_spondias_dulcis

Ambarella

Spondias dulcis

Open this record in the interactive Atlas

About Ambarella

Ambarella (Spondias dulcis) is a post-contact introduced tree documented on Kauaʻi through historical forestry planting records. The reviewed records do not establish present survival. Native to eastern Malesia and the Santa Cruz Islands. Kew documents Spondias in New Guinea primary and sometimes secondary forest on well-drained soil up to 1000 m. Government forestry records document historical planting of Spondias dulcis on Kauaʻi; current survival, naturalization, abundance and ecological effects remain unconfirmed. Public occurrence is island-level only.

Kauaʻi evidence

Taxonomic identity, tree form, diagnostic morphology and island occurrence use the linked reviewed sources. Historical planting, cultivation, naturalization and invasive status are separate. Generated imagery is not occurrence evidence. The 1918–1959 Kauaʻi reforestation working register records 422 plants under Spondias dulcis across 4 entries dated 1936–1938. These are recorded planting quantities, not counts of surviving trees, and they do not by themselves establish current persistence, naturalization, or ecological impact. Source: Kauaʻi Reforestation Plantings 1918–1959 working register (user-supplied; reconciled 6 October 2026).

Names and classification

Scientific name: Spondias dulcis
Common names: Ambarella · June plum
Other names: Spondias dulcis · Ambarella · June plum
Record type: Species

Kauaʻi occurrence and status

Kauaʻi occurrence: Recorded on Kauaʻi
Origin: Introduced
Conservation status: Not yet assessed
Evidence date: 2026-10-06
Evidence limits: Current survival on Kauaʻi, numbers, occupied habitat, reproduction and ecological effects are unconfirmed; historical planting does not establish naturalization.

Habitat and ecology

Habitats: Not yet assessed
Food and resource needs: Not yet assessed
Reproduction: Small bisexual flowers have five petals and ten stamens; fleshy fruits contain a bony endocarp with stiff projections into the pulp. A primary seedling study describes an initial opposite pair of trifoliolate leaves followed by alternate five-leaflet leaves and a taproot with secondary roots. Kauaʻi fruiting, seed viability and recruitment are unknown.
Shelter: Not yet assessed
Growth form: Deciduous tree

Threats and conservation

Monitoring: Not yet assessed
Data gaps: Current population extent and trajectory · Additional species-specific ecological and conservation sources

Process and seasonal context

Seasonal timing: Not yet assessed
Seasonal description: Ambarella (Spondias dulcis) is a post-contact introduced tree documented on Kauaʻi through historical forestry planting records. The reviewed records do not establish present survival. Native to eastern Malesia and the Santa Cruz Islands. Kew documents Spondias in New Guinea primary and sometimes secondary forest on well-drained soil up to 1000 m. Government forestry records document historical planting of Spondias dulcis on Kauaʻi; current survival, naturalization, abundance and ecological effects remain unconfirmed. Public occurrence is island-level only.

Sources and further reading

Suggest changes to this record