Kauaʻi, anglicized as Kauai, is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle", Kauaʻi lies 73 miles (117 km) across the Kauaʻi Channel, northwest of Oʻahu. This island is the site of Waimea Canyon State Park and the Na Pali Coast State Park.
Waimea Canyon, also known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, is a large canyon, approximately ten miles (16 km) long and up to 3,000 feet deep, located on the western side of Kauaʻi in the Hawaiian Islands of the United States. Waimea is Hawaiian for "reddish water", a reference to the erosion of the canyon's red soil. The canyon was formed by a deep incision of the Waimea River arising from the extreme rainfall on the island's central peak, Mount Waiʻaleʻale, among the wettest places on earth.
Hawaiian hibiscus are seven species of hibiscus native to Hawaii. The yellow hibiscus is Hawaii's state flower. Most commonly grown as ornamental plants in the Hawaiian Islands are the Chinese hibiscus and its numerous hybrids, though the native Hibiscus arnottianus is occasionally planted.
Waimea is a common place name in Hawaii and New Zealand. In Hawaiian, it means reddish water; in Māori it means forgotten or hidden stream. It may refer to:
Hibiscus waimeae is a species of flowering plant within the okra family, Malvaceae, that is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii.
Wilkesia gymnoxiphium, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae that is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaiʻi. It is classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List. Wilkesia is one of three genera, with Argyroxiphium and Dubautia that are believed to be descendant from a single species related to the North American tarweed. The members of these three genera constitute what is called the silversword alliance, a group whose exceedingly close genetic heritage is not reflected in their exceptionally diverse morphologies.
Hibiscadelphus distans is an extremely rare species of flowering plant in the mallow family, Malvaceae, that is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii. It is known as hau kuahiwi in Hawaiian, which means "upland Hibiscus tiliaceus." It is a bush or small tree with heart-shaped leaves and yellow flowers and grows at between 1,000 and 1,800 feet in the remnants of native dry forests. Despite its rarity, it is believed to be the only surviving species in the genus Hibiscadelphus which is only known from Hawaii, the other five species having recently become extinct in the wild, some being known from only a single plant.
Route 50 is a 33-mile (53 km) road that stretches from Route 56 at the junction of Rice Street in Lihue to a point approximately 1/5 mile north of the northernmost entrance of the Pacific Missile Range Facility on the western shore of Kauai. It is the longest numbered road on the island of Kauaʻi and is named Kaumualiʻi Highway.
The ʻakekeʻe is a bird species in the family Fringillidae, where it is placed in the Hawaiian honeycreeper genus Loxops. It is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi where it is found in small numbers in higher elevations. Because of their similar size, shape, and unusual bill, the ʻakekeʻe and the ʻakepa were for some time classified as a single species. This was eventually changed, because of differences in their color, nesting behavior, and calls.
Melicope knudsenii, commonly known as Olokele Valley melicope or Knudsen's melicope, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It inhabits montane mesic forests dominated by Acacia koa, Metrosideros polymorpha, and Dicranopteris linearis on Kauaʻi and East Maui (Auwahi). Associated plants include Syzygium sandwicensis, Cheirodendron trigynum, Myrsine lessertiana, Ilex anomala, Alphitonia ponderosa, Zanthoxylum dipetalum, Kadua terminalis, Pleomele aurea, Bobea spp., Tetraplasandra waimeae, Xylosma hawaiiense, Eurya sandwicensis, Psychotria mariniana, Melicope anisata, Melicope barbigera, Pouteria sandwicensis, Dodonaea viscosa, and Dianella sandwicensis. It is threatened by habitat loss. Like other Hawaiian Melicope, this species is known as alani. This is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Lipochaeta, common name nehe, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae that is endemic to Hawaii.
Melanthera, squarestem, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to North and South America, as well as Africa, Asia and Oceania, including Hawaiʻi.
Dubautia latifolia is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name koholapehu. It is endemic to Hawaii where it is known only from the west side of the island of Kauai. Like other Dubautia this plant is called na`ena`e.
Melanthera fauriei, known by the common name Olokele Canyon nehe, is a rare species of flowering plant in the aster family.
Melanthera kamolensis, known by the common name Maui nehe, is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae.
Melanthera micrantha, known by the common name Kauai nehe, is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae.
Melanthera tenuifolia is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names Waianae Range nehe and slender-leaf nehe.
Melanthera venosa is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name spreading nehe. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Hawaii. It is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States.
Remya kauaiensis is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, known by the common name of Kauai remya. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Kauai. It is threatened by the degradation of its habitat. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Schiedea attenuata is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae known by the common name Kalalau schiedea. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the Kalalau Valley on the island of Kauai. It is threatened by the degradation of its habitat. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 2010.
