Kāwaʻu | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Aquifoliales |
Family: | Aquifoliaceae |
Genus: | Ilex |
Species: | I. anomala
|
Binomial name | |
Ilex anomala | |
Synonyms[1] | |
|
Ilex anomala, commonly known as Hawai'i holly, kāwaʻu, or ʻaiea in Hawaii, is a species of holly.[2] It is native to the Hawaiian Islands and the Marquesas Islands and Society Islands of French Polynesia.[1]
On Hawaii it inhabits mixed mesic and wet forests at elevations of 600–1,400 m (2,000–4,600 ft) on all main islands.[3] In the Marquesas Islands it is a characteristic canopy tree in low-canopied cloud forests above 1000 meters elevation, along with the trees Cheirodendron bastardianum and Metrosideros collina and climbers of Freycinetia spp.[4]