Galapagos Species Database

The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.

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Alocasia macrorrhizos (L.) G. Don.

camacho, malanga, giant taro, elephant’s ear taro

Photo: .
Photo: .

Massive, pachycaul, evergreen herb to 4 m with slightly milky latex. Stem erect to ca 1.5 m, then decumbent. Leaves several to rather many together, clustered at the tips of stems of larger plants (GBIF, 2023).

It is a subshrub or shrub and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It is used as animal food, a poison and a medicine, has environmental uses and social uses and for food (POWO, 2023).

Taxonomy

Domain
Eukaryota

Kingdom
Plantae

Phylum
Magnoliophyta

Class
Liliopsida (= Monocotyledoneae)

Order
Arales

Family
Araceae

Genus
Alocasia

Species
macrorrhizos

Taxon category: Accepted

Syn.: Alocasia plumbea Van Houtte; Syn.: Alocasia plumbea Van Houtte, A. grandis N.E.Br. (Illegitimate) fide Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew & Missouri Botanical Garden (2010)

Origin: Introduced - established

Introduction

Year of first record: 1985

Mode of introduction: Intentional

Introduction Pathway: Intentional

Subpathway: Agriculture/Horticulture

Introduced status: Human dependent

Invasive status: Unlikely to become invasive

Distribution

Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.

Distribution: The native range of this species is Central Malesia to Queensland (POWO, 2023).

References

  • Tropicos.org. (2017) Database of Missouri Botanical Garden. Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden. 06 Oct 2017 <http://www.tropicos.org
  • Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Missouri Botanical Garden (eds.) (2013) The Plant List, Version 1.1. Published on the Internet; http://www.theplantlist.org/ (accessed 1st January).
  • Guézou, A. Trueman, M., Buddenhagen, E., Chamorro, S., Guerrero, A.M., Pozo, P., Atkinson, R. (2010) An extensive Alien Plan Inventory from the Inhabited Areas of Galapagos Plos One/ www.plosone.org. Volume 5/ Issue 4/e10276
  • GBIF Secretariat (2021) GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei Accessed via https://www.gbif.org/species/5284517
  • Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (2022) Plants of the world online POWO (2022): Plants of the world online. Published on the Internet; Https://powo.science.kew.org/

You are welcome to download and use the information found in this page, acknowledging its source.

This page should be cited as follows:

"Galapagos Species Database, Alocasia macrorrhizos", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=1850. Accessed 2 July 2025.