Tetramolopium arenarium

Tetramolopium arenarium is a rare species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common name Maui tetramolopium.[1] It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Hawaii. It is extirpated from Maui. It is threatened by the degradation of its habitat. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.[2]

Tetramolopium arenarium

Critically Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Asterids
Order:
Asterales
Family:
Asteraceae
Subfamily:
Asteroideae
Tribe:
Astereae
Genus:
Tetramolopium
Species:
T. arenarium
Binomial name
Tetramolopium arenarium

This plant was collected in the late 1800s and then not seen again for many decades. It was presumed extinct until it was rediscovered in 1989 in the Pohakuloa Training Area on the island of Hawaii.[3][4] There are five populations containing fewer than 500 individuals.[5]

This shrub grows 80 to 130 centimeters tall. It is hairy and glandular. The leaves are lance-shaped and toothed or smooth-edged and measure up to 3.7 centimeters in length. The inflorescence contains up to 11 flower heads containing white ray florets and maroon disc florets.[2]

Threats to this species include habitat destruction and degradation by feral ungulates such as pigs, and competition from introduced species of plants such as fountain grass.[2]

References
  1. "Tetramolopium arenarium". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  2. USFWS. Determination of Endangered or Threatened Status for 21 Plants From the Island of Hawaii, State of Hawaii. Federal Register March 4, 1994.
  3. Douglas, P. P. and R. B. Shaw. (1989). Rediscovery of Tetramolopium arenarium subsp. arenarium var. arenarium (Asteraceae: Astereae) on the Pohakuloa Training Area, Hawaii. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 76(4) 1182.
  4. Laven, R. D., et al. (1991). Population Structure of the Recently Rediscovered Hawaiian Shrub Tetramolopium arenarium (Asteraceae). Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 78(4) 1073.
  5. Tetramolopium arenarium. The Nature Conservancy.
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