Hibiscus waimeae

Hibiscus waimeae
Hibiscus waimeae subsp. hannerae

Imperiled  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Malvales
Family: Malvaceae
Genus: Hibiscus
Species: H. waimeae
Binomial name
Hibiscus waimeae
A.Heller
Subspecies

H. waimeae subsp. hannerae (O.Deg & I.Deg.) D.Bates[2]
H. w. waimeae

Hibiscus waimeae (white Kauai rosemallow, Hawaiian: kokiʻo keʻokeʻo, or kokiʻo kea) is a species of flowering plant in the okra family, Malvaceae, that is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii.[1] It is a small gray-barked tree, reaching a height of 6–10 metres (20–33 ft)[3] and a trunk diameter of 0.3 m (0.98 ft).[4] The flowers last for a single day, starting out white and fading to pink in the afternoon.[5] H. arnottianus of Oʻahu and Molokaʻi and H. waimeae are the only Hawaiian hibiscuses that have white flowers.[6] H. waimeae inhabits coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of 250–1,200 m (820–3,940 ft).[1]

H. waimeae subsp. waimeae can be found in the western and southwestern parts of the island, where it grows in the Waimea Canyon area and valleys that face the ocean.[7] H. waimeae subsp. hannerae is rarer (listed as endangered by the USFWS) and can be found in the northwestern part of the island[8] where it grows in the Hanakapiʻai, Limahuli, and Kalihi Wai valleys.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Hibiscus waimeae". NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  2. 1 2 "Hibiscus waimeae subsp. hannerae". Meet the Plants. National Tropical Botanical Garden. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  3. ↑ Wagner, Warren Lambert; Derral R. Herbst; S. H. Sohmer (1990). Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaiʻi. Volume 1. University of Hawaii Press. p. 888. ISBN 978-0-8248-1152-5.
  4. ↑ Little Jr., Elbert L.; Roger G. Skolmen (1989). "Kokiʻo keʻokeʻo, native white hibiscus" (PDF). United States Forest Service.
  5. ↑ "Hibiscus waimeae". Hawaiian Native Plant Propagation Database. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  6. ↑ Bornhorst, Heidi Leianuenue (2005). Growing Native Hawaiian Plants: A How-to Guide for the Gardener (2nd ed.). Bess Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-57306-207-7.
  7. ↑ "Hibiscus waimeae subsp. waimeae". Meet the Plants. National Tropical Botanical Garden. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  8. ↑ "Hibiscus waimeae ssp. hannerae". The Hawaiʻi Biodiversity & Mapping Program. University of Hawaiʻi. Retrieved 2009-11-18.

External links

Media related to Hibiscus waimeae at Wikimedia Commons

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