Thespesia populnea
Seaside mahoe

Non-Native in Florida

For more information and pictures about seaside mahoe, as contained in the Langeland/Burks book, Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida's Natural Areas, download this Acrobat .PDF file.

This interesting Brazilian web site about the Malvaceae by Marcos Capelini includes photos and information about Thespesia and several other similar-looking trees, such as Hibiscus pernambucensis.


Also see the page by Marcos Capelini comparing Hibiscus pernambucensis and H. tiliaceus, two difficult-to-distinguish trees, the former of which is native to Florida, the latter of which is a non-native listed as a Category II "invasive exotic" by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council.

The UF/IFAS Assessment lists plants according to their invasive status in Florida. View the list here.

Click here to see the herbarium specimen image of the UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA HERBARIUM DIGITAL IMAGING PROJECTS.