| Alphitonia ponderosa | |
|---|---|
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| Alphitonia ponderosa flower | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rhamnaceae |
| Genus: | Alphitonia |
| Species: | A. ponderosa |
| Binomial name | |
| Alphitonia ponderosa | |
Alphitonia ponderosa is a species of flowering tree in the family Rhamnaceae, that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It is locally known as kauila, as is the related Colubrina oppositifolia .
Alphitonia ponderosa is a medium to large tree, reaching 15–24 m (49–79 ft) high with a trunk 20–60 cm (7.9–23.6 in) in diameter. [2]
The alternate leaves are ovate, 5–15 cm (2.0–5.9 in) long, and have 13–25-millimetre (0.51–0.98 in) petioles. The leaves are shiny, hairless, and green on the top, but are a dull light green with rust-colored veins on the bottom. [2]
Flowers of A. ponderosa are polygamous and form cymes at the bases of leaves. They are 6 mm (0.24 in) in diameter; the five sepals are 1.5 mm (0.059 in) and cover five 0.75-millimetre (0.030 in) petals. [2]
The fruit of A. ponderosa is a 15-millimetre (0.59 in) diameter drupe, which contain two to three seeds. The seeds are shiny, oblong, and have a red covering. [2]
Alphitonia ponderosa inhabits dry, coastal mesic, and mixed mesic forests at elevations of 240–1,250 m (790–4,100 ft) on all main islands, but is rare except on Kauaʻi. [3] It grows as a shrub on exposed ridges. [2]
The reddish-brown wood of A. ponderosa is highly prized for its beauty, strength, and density. It was used as a replacement for metal by the Native Hawaiians, [2] who made laʻau melomelo (fishing lures), pāhoa (daggers), ihe (short spears), pololū (long spears), ʻōʻō (digging sticks), hohoa (round kapa , beaters)ʻiʻe kūkū (square kapa beaters), leiomano (shark tooth clubs), and kiʻi (tiki carvings) with it. [4]
Alphitonia ponderosa is considered a vulnerable species by the IUCN because of its fragmented distribution and declining population. Major threats include rats, pigs, deer, competition with introduced species of plants, and wildfire. [5]
Hawaiian lava sledding is a traditional sport of the Native Hawaiians. Similar to wave surfing, heʻe hōlua involves the use of a narrow wooden sled. The sled is used standing up, lying down, or kneeling, to ride down man-made or naturally occurring courses of rock, often reaching speeds of 50 mph (80 km/h) or greater. In the past, Hawaiian lava sledding was considered both a sport and a religious ritual for honoring the gods.
Metrosideros polymorpha, the ʻōhiʻa lehua, is a species of flowering evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that is endemic to the six largest islands of Hawaiʻi. It is a highly variable tree, being 20–25 m (66–82 ft) tall in favorable situations, and a much smaller prostrate shrub when growing in boggy soils or directly on basalt. It produces a brilliant display of flowers, made up of a mass of stamens, which can range from fiery red to yellow. Many native Hawaiian traditions refer to the tree and the forests it forms as sacred to Pele, the volcano goddess, and to Laka, the goddess of hula. ʻŌhiʻa trees grow easily on lava, and are usually the first plants to grow on new lava flows.
Kauila refers to two species of trees in the buckthorn family, Rhamnaceae, that are endemic to Hawaiʻi: Alphitonia ponderosa and Colubrina oppositifolia. Their wood was prized for being extremely hard, and is so dense that it sinks in water. Both occur in dry to mesic forest and are now rare; C. oppositifolia is listed as Endangered. Also see Metrosideros polymorpha
Mezoneuron kavaiense is a rare species of flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. Common names include Uhiuhi, Kāwaʻu (Maui), and Kea (Maui). It is threatened by invasive species, particularly feral ungulates.
Bidens wiebkei, the Molokaʻi koʻokoʻolau or Wiebke's beggarticks, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It belongs to the genus Bidens, collectively called kokoʻolau or koʻokoʻolau in the Hawaiian language. It is found only on Molokaʻi in the Hawaiian Islands. There are three occurrences of the plant remaining, for a total population of fewer than 1000.
Calamagrostis expansa is a species of grass in the family Poaceae known by the common name Maui reedgrass. It is native to Hawaii, where it is known only from Maui and the island of Hawaiʻi. Its natural habitats are lowland moist forests and swamps. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Achyranthes mutica is a species of plant in the family Amaranthaceae. It is endemic to Hawaii. Its natural habitats are dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Alectryon macrococcus, known as ʻAlaʻalahua or Māhoe in Hawaiian, is a species of flowering tree in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii.
Alsinidendron lychnoides is a species of plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. It is endemic to dry forests and low shrublands in Hawaiʻi. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Alsinidendron trinerve, also called three nerved alsinidendron, is a species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae, that is endemic to island of Oʻahu in Hawaii. It is a subshrub, reaching a height of 30–80 cm (12–31 in).
ʻAhakea or Hawaiʻi dogweed is a species of flowering tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, that is endemic to Hawaiʻi. It inhabits lava plains as well as dry, coastal mesic and mixed mesic forests at elevations of 100–1,220 metres (330–4,000 ft) on the islands of Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, and Maui. It is threatened both by habitat loss and competition from invasive species.
ʻAhakea is a species of flowering tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, that is endemic to Hawaiʻi. It inhabits dry, coastal mesic and mixed mesic forests at elevations of 250–580 metres (820–1,900 ft) on the islands of Hawaiʻi and Maui. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Gardenia brighamii, commonly known as nānū, naʻu, or forest gardenia, is a species of flowering plant in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii.
Osteomeles anthyllidifolia, commonly called ʻŪlei, eluehe, uʻulei, Hawaiian rose, or Hawaiian hawthorn, is a species of flowering shrub in the rose family, Rosaceae, that is indigenous to Hawaiʻi, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Pitcairn Island, and Rapa Iti, Taiwan and the Ryukyu islands of Japan.
Santalum freycinetianum, the forest sandalwood, Freycinet sandalwood, or ʻIliahi, is a species of flowering tree in the European mistletoe family, Santalaceae, that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Its binomial name commemorates Henri Louis Claude de Saulces de Freycinet, a 19th-century French explorer. ʻIliahi inhabits dry, coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests on Oʻahu, Kauaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and Molokaʻi at elevations of 250–950 m (820–3,120 ft). It grows in areas that receive 500–3,800 mm (20–150 in) of annual rainfall. Like other members of its genus, ʻiliahi is a root hemi-parasite, deriving some of its nutrients from the host plant; common hosts include koa, koaiʻa, and ʻaʻaliʻi.
Myrsine lessertiana, the kōlea lau nui, is a species of colicwood that is endemic to Hawaiʻi. It inhabits dry, coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of 210–1,220 m (690–4,000 ft) on all main islands. M. lessertiana is a small to medium-sized tree, reaching a height of 18 m (59 ft) and a trunk diameter of 0.3–0.6 m (0.98–1.97 ft).
Santalum ellipticum, commonly known as ʻIliahialoʻe (Hawaiian) or coastal sandalwood, is a species of flowering plant in the mistletoe family, Santalaceae, that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It is a sprawling shrub to small tree, typically reaching a height of 1–5 m (3.3–16.4 ft) and a canopy spread of 1–3 m (3.3–9.8 ft), but is extremely variable in size and shape. Like other members of the genus, S. ellipticum is a hemi-parasite, deriving some of its nutrients from the host plant by attaching to its roots.
Colubrina oppositifolia, known as kauila in Hawaiian, is a species of flowering tree in the family Rhamnaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It can be found in dry, coastal mesic, and mixed mesic forests at elevations of 240–920 m (790–3,020 ft) on the islands of Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi. There is also one individual remaining on Maui. Associated plants include alaheʻe and ʻohe kukuluāeʻo.
Pouteria sandwicensis is a species of flowering tree in the sapodilla family, Sapotaceae, that is endemic to the main islands of Hawaii. Names for this species in the Hawaiian language include ʻĀlaʻa, Āulu and ʻĒlaʻa.
Euphorbia remyi is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is known by the common name Remy's sandmat locally as ʻakoko. It is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii, where it grows in mixed mesic forests, wet forests and bogs from 150 to 900 m.
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