Click on images to enlarge
habit (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
habit (Photo: Forest and Kim Starr, USGS)
bark on main trunk (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
twice-compound leaves (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
large leaf with several branchlets (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
leaflets (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
close-up of underside or leaflets (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
fluffy flower clusters (Photo: Chris Gardiner)
close-up of flowers with prominent pink and white stamens (Photo: Forest and Kim Starr, USGS)
immature fruit (Photo: Chris Gardiner)
mature fruit (Photo: Chris Gardiner)
young plant (Photo: Sheldon Navie)
Scientific Name
Samanea saman (Jacq.) Merr.
Synonyms
Mimosa saman Jacq.
Family
Caesalpiniaceae (Queensland, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory) Fabaceae: sub-family: Caesalpinioideae (New South Wales)Leguminosae (South Australia)
Common Names
cow tamarind, false powder puff, French tamarind, monkey pod, monkeypod, rain tree, raintree, saman
Origin
This species originated in tropical America. The exact native range of this species is obscure, but it is thought to be native to Central America (i.e. Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama) and tropical South America (i.e. Venezuela and Colombia). Possibly also native to other parts of South America (e.g. Brazil and Peru).
Naturalised Distribution
Naturalised in northern and central Queensland.
Also naturalised in south-eastern USA (i.e. Florida), Papua New Guinea and on many Pacific islands (e.g. Fiji, Vanuata, Tonga and Hawaii).
Notes
Rain tree (Samanea saman) is regarded as an environmental weed in northern Queensland.