Lobelia niihauensis
Genus: Lobelia section Revolutella.
Etymology: The current name niihauensis from the location where the plant was collected. The invalid name from latis tortuōsus for twisting, in reference to the twisted, gnarled stems.
Range: Ni'ihau, Kaua'i and the northern Wai'anae range of O'ahu, cliffs, 125-725 m.
Growth form: Subshrub, 0.2-0.4 m tall.
Illustration from Heller, 1897
The species was first collected by Heller on a cliff along the Hanapepe river in southern Kaua'i. He named the species Lobelia tortuosa likely due to its thick, gnarled roots that protrude from rock crevices and which give rise to twisted, finally ascending branches. Rock (1919) only references Heller's description and the related herbarium specimen. He noted the garnet-colored flowers and their urceolate shape and, though not clearly describing the branching pattern, he called it unusual in that other Revolutella, usually branch at the base or at the apex below the racemes. Harold St. John, separately, in 1931 but based on a herbarium specimen from a collection by Stokes (1912) on Ni'ihau described a very similar plant calling it Lobelia niihauensis. Lammers (1990) combined the two plants and used the specific epithet niihauensis noting that L. tortuosa had been published in 1891 by Kuntze in describing what is now Scaevola tortuosa.
How to identify:
Sources:
- Heller, 1897 (as Lobelia tortuosa);
- Rock, 1919 (as Lobelia tortuosa);
- St. John, 1931;
- Wimmer, 1953 (as Lobelia tortuosa, including f. glabrata);
- Wimmer, 1953 (including var. forbesii and var. meridiana);
- Wagner et al., 1990.