Schiedea helleri
Encyclopedia
Schiedea helleri is a rare species of flowering plant in the pink family
known by the common names Heller's schiedea and Kaholuamanu schiedea. 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 was federally listed as an endangered species
of the United States in 1996.
This plant is a vine growing at least 15 centimeters long. The oppositely arranged leaves have thick blades up to 14 centimeters long by 6 wide and mostly hairless in texture, except for a few hairs near the edges. The inflorescence
is a branching cluster of flowers. The plant is easily distinguished from other Schiedea on Kauai, which are not vines.
This plant was thought to be extinct
until it was rediscovered in 1993. It occurs in wet forest habitat near a stream at the edge of Alakai Wilderness Preserve. By 2010 there were two populations containing up to 101 plants.
Caryophyllaceae
The Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactaceae and Polygonaceae...
known by the common names Heller's schiedea and Kaholuamanu schiedea. 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 island of Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
. It is threatened by the degradation of its habitat. 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...
of the United States in 1996.
This plant is a vine growing at least 15 centimeters long. The oppositely arranged leaves have thick blades up to 14 centimeters long by 6 wide and mostly hairless in texture, except for a few hairs near the edges. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a branching cluster of flowers. The plant is easily distinguished from other Schiedea on Kauai, which are not vines.
This plant was thought to be extinct
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
until it was rediscovered in 1993. It occurs in wet forest habitat near a stream at the edge of Alakai Wilderness Preserve. By 2010 there were two populations containing up to 101 plants.