Cyrtandra viridiflora is a rare species of flowering plant in the African violet family

Gesneriaceae

Gesneriaceae is a family of flowering plants consisting of ca. 150 genera and ca. 3,200 species in the Old World and New World tropics and subtropics, with a very small number extending to temperate areas. Many species have colorful and showy flowers and are cultivated as ornamental plants.Most...

. It is endemic to Hawaii

Hawaii

Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

, where it is known only from the northern Koolau Mountains of Oahu

Oahu

Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...

. By 2003 there were nine small populations remaining, for a total of 69 plants. It was federally listed as an endangered species

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

 in 1996. Like other Hawaiian Cyrtandra it is called ha`iwale.

This plant is a shrub

Shrub

A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...

 growing 0.5 to 2 meters tall with hairy leaves and green and white flowers. It grows in the cloud zone of the mountains in wet, windy habitat. This habitat is degraded by several forces, including feral pigs and exotic plant species

Introduced species

An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...

 such as Koster's curse

Clidemia hirta

Clidemia hirta, commonly called soapbush or Koster's Curse, is a perennial shrub.It is an invasive plant species in many tropical regions of the world, creating serious damage.-Distribution:...

 (Clidemia hirta) and strawberry guava (Psidium cattleianum). In conservation efforts, some plants have been fence

Fence

A fence is a freestanding structure designed to restrict or prevent movement across a boundary. It is generally distinguished from a wall by the lightness of its construction: a wall is usually restricted to such barriers made from solid brick or concrete, blocking vision as well as passage .Fences...

d to protect them and many seeds have been collected.