J. curcas is not an invasive species. Jatropha is a natural plant, established pre­dominantly through human intervention. Due to the size and the weight of its seeds, they are not dispersed by wind. Animals do not eat the fruit or seeds because of their bitter taste and therefore the seeds are not dispersed through animal droppings. Other than human intervention, Jatropha seeds are likely to be dispersed only by running water. Jatropha has been widely cultivated on a small scale in a wide variety of locations from Central America to the Pacific Islands, and there are no scientifically substantiated reports of the species behaving in an invasive manner.

J, curcas is, however, classified as invasive in some countries, including Aus­tralia. This classification is based, we believe, on confusion between J. curcas and other species of Jatropha (e. g., J. gossypifolia). We understand that these classifi­cations are now being re-examined as more research is carried out on the crop. Studies that support this conclusion include Staples et al. [3] and Van Aarde [4].

We can confirm that J. curcas does not appear on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of invasive species (www. invasivespecies. net).

Furthermore, J. curcas does not appear as a weed or otherwise on the website of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC; www. ippc. int) — the international treaty governing intergovernmental action on pests, weeds, and plant diseases.

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