Author Archives: Sebastian Marquez

Getting to know your Hawaiian Lobeliads #17: Cyanea pohaku

Posted on December 17, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

Cyanea pohaku Conservation Status: Extinct Distribution: East Maui (Pu’unianiau) Date photographed: October 11, 1910? (J.F. Rock) *Identification: Form– Sparingly branched trees 6-7 m tall. Leaves– oblanceolate; blades 16-30 cm long by 1.5-4 cm wide; margins callose-crenulate; winged petioles 0.8-2 cm long. Flower– … Continue reading →

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Well, worked on some behind the scenes stuff today. Added Joel Lau’s flickr page to the links. There aren’t too many places out there to get better up-to-date information on native flora than his page. Added Hawai’i Loa Ridge to … Continue reading →

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez | Leave a comment

Snapshot: Los del Rio’s Machaerina

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

Don’t everybody start dancing all at once now. Of the 2 native Machaerina found in Hawai’i, Uki (Machaerina angustifolia) is more easily differentiated from M. mariscoides by being a typically larger plant and a deeper shade of green. I’ve usually … Continue reading →

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It’s a White Christmas from the Hawaiian Forest

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

The holiday season is full of magic and warmth and giving, no matter where in the world you happen to be. But growing up in the Midwest, I’ve grown to miss the Christmas of my youth. This past hike into … Continue reading →

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Getting to know your Hawaiian Lobeliads #16: Lobelia niihauensis

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

Lobelia niihauensis Conservation Status: Rare Distribution: Ni’ihau, Kaua’i, O’ahu (Northern Wai’anae Mts) Date photographed: 8/10/2011 *Identification: Form– Stems woody, prostrate, 2-4 dm long. Leaves– Leaves narrowly elliptic or oblanceolate; 7-15 cm long, 0.7-1.8 cm wide; sessile or subsessile. Flower– hypanthium obconical to … Continue reading →

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Pupukea Redux

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

I had mentioned in my last article about plants that I had seen previously in Pupukea. Only after posting that did I realize that I never uploaded the other half of the Kaunala excursion. Which is a shame because there … Continue reading →

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Snapshot: Niu Valley’s Papala

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

Papala (Charpentiera ovata) is still found scattered in many valleys and gulches of Moloka’i, Maui, and Hawai’i. On O’ahu its range is limited to the Southern Ko’olaus. C. ovata is split into 2 different varieties. The more common var. ovata … Continue reading →

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Loulu of La’ie

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

A few weeks back, I had the pleasure of attending Don Hodel’s talk on the native Loulu palms (Pritchardia spp.) found here in Hawai’i. It was highly informative. Mostly, Dr. Hodel focused on the key distinctions between various species. The … Continue reading →

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Snapshot: Gahnia vs. Gahnia

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

Sedges are a key component of the forest understory. Here, I just wanted to highlight the big difference between 2 native species of Gahnia is Hawai’i. The infloresence for the 2 is quite different. Pictured above is Gahnia beecheyi. It … Continue reading →

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Snapshot: Olona fruit

Posted on October 30, 2011 by Sebastian Marquez

One of the best feelings when doing restoration work is seeing your efforts paying off. Here, one of the Olona (Touchardia latifolia) has finally come into full infructescence. The Manoa population seems to exhibit some morphological diversity. These mature fruits … Continue reading →

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