Tropical Plant Database - Plant Details

Pritchardia kaalae grows up to 5m tall with the characteristic large fan-shaped, or palmate, leaves. Unlike the leaves of many Pritchardia species, which are covered with dense hair, the leaves of P. kaalae have a waxy coating with fine rust color scales sometimes visible. Plants can have thin and papery or thick and leathery leaves. Pritchardia flowers produce nectar in a disc formed from the fused calyx of the flower that surrounds the ovary where the fruit will develop. As the flowers mature you can often see large numbers of insects visiting the flowers to remove the nectar and in doing so they serve as pollinators by moving pollen from the male to female flowers that are found in separate inflorescences. The fruit of Pritchardia kaalae are about 2 cm in diameter and brown or black when ripe.

(Wagner, W. L., Herbst, D. R., and S. H. Sohmer. 1999. Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawai‘i. Revised Edition. Volume 2. Bishop Museum Special Publication 97. University of Hawai‘i Press, Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawai’i.)

The genus Pritchardia contains 26 species throughout the Pacific, including species in Fiji, Samoa Tonga, Tuamotus, and Hawaii. Twenty-three species are only found in Hawai’i and are said to be endemic species meaning this is the only place in the world that they grow. Pritchardia kaalae is one of the endemic Hawaiian species that has a very narrow geographic distribution. As its name suggests this species is found in the Wai‘anae Mountains of O‘ahu with populations found on the northern side of Mt Ka‘ala and on the nearby M?kua-M?kaha Ridge. This species is found in wet forest and is able to survive on both the windswept ridges and in more sheltered valleys from 450-980m.

(Chapin, M.H., K.R. Wood, S.P. Perlman, and M. Maunder. 2004. A review of the conservation status of the endemic Pritchardia palms of Hawai‘i. Oryx 38(3): 273-281.)
(Wagner, W. L., Herbst, D. R., and S. H. Sohmer. 1999. Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawai‘i. Revised Edition. Volume 2. Bishop Museum Special Publication 97. University of Hawai‘i Press, Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawai‘i.)
(Hodel, D.R. 2007. A Review of the Genus Pritchardia. Palms 51(supplement): S1-S52.)

Pritchardia kaalae is listed as critically endangered on the IUCH Red List of Threatened Species as it is considered to be facing extreme risk of extinction in the wild in the immediate future. It is recognized as endangered and is therefore protected under the US Endangered Species Act in 1996. Only 170 individuals remain in the wild which are considered to represent a single population. Threats to the persistence of these populations include competition with introduced, non-native species such as Christmas berry (Schinus terebinthifolius), predation of the seeds by introduced rats (Rattus sp.) and trampling and habitat disturbance by feral pigs (Sus scrofa). The small number of Pritchardia kaalae individuals makes it vulnerable to extinction as a result of natural and human disturbance and resulting habitat loss. Reduction in reproductive success is possible when species contain few individuals as a result of increased inbreeding, that is reproduction between genetically closely related individuals.

(IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (www.iucnredlist.org, accessed 3 June, 2007)
(US Environmental Protection Agency. October 10, 1996. Federal Register 61(198): 53089-53108.)

The University of Hawaii is currently conducting seed viability and storage studies for Pritchardia. This research will ensure that seeds are stored in conditions that maximize their longevity and therefore retain their ability to germinate after long periods in storage. Many Pritchardia species are cultivated as ornamental palms in botanical gardens and the ease of cultivation of Pritchardia kaalae makes this a popular and widely grown plant in botanical gardens.

(Chapin, M.H., K.R. Wood, S.P. Perlman, and M. Maunder. 2004. A review of the conservation status of the endemic Pritchardia palms of Hawai‘i. Oryx 38(3): 273-281.)

We currently have 4 herbarium specimens for Pritchardia kaalae in our collection. Click on any specimen below to view the herbarium sheet data.

• Unassigned - collected by K. R. Wood in 1990
• 025971 - collected by K. R. Wood in 1992
• 025970 - collected by Melany H. Chapin in 1997
• 038697 - collected by Jaime Pacheco in 2002