‘Olapa is one of those trees that most forest walkers know. It is quite abundant in the cool, moist forests of Hawai’i Island and attracts a walker’s attention by fluttering. The fluttering movement is done by leaves that grow from the tip of a stalk into several leaflets, each on their own stalk. This allows for a lot of flexibility when a breeze blows, sending those leaflets into a flutter. In a good breeze, they make quite a rustle, turning heads. ‘Olapa has a couple of meanings in Hawaiian. One is to flash or flare up, and the other is dancer. It is easy to see how this applies to those leaves. The early Hawaiians also took notice of ‘olapa for practical purposes. References of uses of this tree range from bird catching to hula to weapons and more.
The scientific name for the endemic ‘olapa we see on the Big island is Cheirodendron trigynum. C. trigynum is a member of the ginseng family of plants, which has another family member much less well-known than ‘olapa. That plant is also an endemic, medium-sized tree with fluttering leaflets and likes to live in cool moist terrain. Its scientific name is Polyscias oahuensis, and its Hawaiian name is ’ohe mauka.
Not many have heard of ‘ohe mauka and fewer have seen it. Like ‘olapa, ‘ohe mauka is a very attractive tree with masses of dark purple fruits hanging in terminal clusters. But unlike ‘olapa it seems to be very shy as it is hard to find, even though it is not listed as rare or endangered. Early Hawaiians didn’t take much notice of it either, as unlike ‘olapa, it only has one recorded use. One way to go unnoticed is to change your name, and ‘ohe mauka’s scientific name has gone through a couple dozen of names before landing on its current one of Polyscias oahuensis ten years ago. Thankfully, its Hawaiian name remains the same. But it would be nice if we could draw this shy plant out of hiding, plant it and allow it to flutter alongside ‘olapa in our forests.
Comments