Clermontia clermontioides (Gaudich.)A. Heller

Genus: Clermontia sect. Clermontioideae.

Subspecies: Subsp. clermontioides occurs along the southern side of Mauna Loa. Subsp. rockiana ranges from Hualālai south to the western slope of Mauna Loa. Where the ranges overlap, rockiana occurs at higher elevations.

Range: Hawai'i, Ka'ū and Kona districts, mesic to wet forest, 670-1,875 m.

Growth form: Shrub, 1.6-6.5 m tall.

This species has been confused with Clermontia fauriei which has led to a tortured nomenclature. The current circumscription is easy: Cl. clermontioides is found on Hawai'i; Cl. fauriei is found on Kaua'i. Cl. coerulea is a synonym for Cl. clermontioides. And please don't further confuse Cyanea fauriei, also of Kaua'i, but which has now been placed into synonymy with Cy. coriaceae. Finally, Cl. gaudichaudii coined by Hillebrand and continued by Rock is nom. illeg. and was circumscribed to include both Cl. clermontioides and Cl. fauriei.

The first use of the clermontioides epithet was in Gaudichaud's illustration from the atlas of the Voyage of the Bonite which made stops in Kealakekua Bay (near Kona on the big island) and Honolulu (on O'ahu). Thus the clermontioides epithet is correctly attached to the plant found on the big island. Gray (1861) simply sites Gaudichaud and expresses doubt as to the distinctness of the species. Mann (1868) is the first to start the confusion by basing his description on a composite of a juvenile species collected (in Kaua'i) by the U.S.Exploring Expedition and Gaudichaud's illustration. The principle discrepancy is describing the plant as "hirtellus".

Wawra, 1873, continues the confusion saying that Cl. clermontioides are located only on Kaua'i. He does not describe the plant other than mentioning the sticky latex that made it hard to dry. Hillebrand, 1888, duplicates the confusion by calling the Kaua'i species Clermontia gaudichaudii (though placing Gaudichaud's "Delissea clermontioides" in synonymy with this new binomial) and calling the plants from Hawai'i Clermontia coerulea.

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