Clermontia pallida Hillebr.

Genus: Clermontia section Clermontioideae sepaloid sepals

Range: Moloka'i, wet forests, 915-1,390 m.

Growth form: Shrub, 2-5 m tall.

This species has the candelabra-like branching habit typical of Clermontia.

How to identify: Rock (1919) says the specific epithet comes from the very pale-green leaves. More distinct is the yellow-white, translucent petioles which are distinct to this species amongst the Lobelioideae (Lammers, 1991). Otherwise, this is one of four Clermontia to grow on Moloka'i. Our species has petaloid sepals, whereas Clermontia arborescences subsp. waikoluensis has sepaloid sepals. The other two species from Moloka'i, Clermontia grandiflora subsp. munroi, and Clermontia oblongifolia subsp. brevipes, have petaloid sepals like Cl. pallida, but their lower calyx lobes are shorter than the tube whereas in Cl. pallida all the calyx lobes are as long as the tube.

Images:

Sources:

• Hillebrand, 1888;
• Rock, 1919;
• Wimmer, 1943 (including var. ramosissima);
• Degener, 1960 (including var. ramosissima);
• Wagner et al., 1990.