Plants

ʻĀkulikuli flower seen in the wetlands of Kaloko-Honokōhau.

NPS Photo

Native Plants

As you walk along the coastal trails, keep your eye out for many of the plants that are native to Hawaii. Watch for the fragrant pua maia with its flowers of white which was used for medicine and to help set broken bones. Growing along the lava, you may spot the lavender pohuehue, a native beach morning glory. Walk under the shade of the gracious hala tree, whose leaves are used to weave mats and baskets. Native plants may be either indigenous, meaning that they are found in our island chain as well as other places in the world, or endemic meaning that they are found only in the Hawaiian Islands.

Polynesian Plants

When the first Polynesians came to Hawaii, they brought with them the plants and animals they would need to make a start in the new world. In the park you can spot the shiny-leafed noni, with its pale yellow fruit. Noni was used as a tonic to treat many different ailments.

You may also notice several stone planters found around the Hale Ho'okipa Visitor Contact Station. In this dry land, the planters were used to raise crops. The stone walls protected the plants from the wind and coconut husks soaked in water were placed around the growing plants to keep the soil moist. Imagine bringing your plants needed for food and medicine across the Pacific and nurturing them in such a hot and dry place.

Non-Native Plants

Unfortunately, many plants found in the park are invading the native ecosystem, choking out the native vegetation and damaging archeological sites. The park is battling these alien invaders with pesticides, vegetation removal and out-planting native species.

In recent years non-native red mangrove has aggressively invaded many shoreline habitats in Hawai'i. Beginning in the mid-70s, red mangrove overran both Kaloko and ʻAimakapā Ponds. Shortly after the park acquired the lands the park staff aggressively removed the mangrove. This was a huge undertaking and the park's example has now been widely copied on the other islands in Hawai'i. Red mangrove has been entirely removed from the park - but the management staff constantly monitors and removes all new seedlings of this invasive weed.

View a PDF guide to the Plants of Kaloko-Honokōhau.