Lo'ulu  (Pritchardia viscosa)

Classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List (1).

This small fan palm is extremely rare with only 4 plants remaining in the wild. The leaf blades radiate from the squat trunk; they have a slightly luminescent appearance due to the silvery-grey underside (2). The flower stalk, or inflorescence, is roughly the same length as the leaf stalk; it is loosely branched with two vertical rows of extremely shiny, almost varnished-looking, flowers (2). The pear-shaped fruit is up to 4 centimetres long and 2.5 centimetres across (2).

The genus Pritchardia are the only palms native to the Hawaiian archipelago (3), and P. viscosa is found on the island of Kauai (1). This palm is extremely rare and only 4 plants are currently known to survive in the wild (4); these are found on the windward side of a ridge at the end of the Powerline Trail (2).

Inhabits wet, open rainforest at altitudes of between 500 and 700 metres above sea level (2).

Little is known about the ecology of this rare palm.

Pritchardia viscosa is extremely rare and the four remaining wild plants are highly vulnerable to any chance event that may occur. This species has suffered from habitat destruction and from competition with invasive introduced species such as Rhodomyrtus spp. and Psidium spp. (4). In 1992, Hurricane Iniki swept through the area and destroyed yet more of the remaining plants (1). Today, the biggest threat to the survival of the 4 remaining trees comes from seed predation by rats, pigs or humans (1).

Pritchardia viscosa is listed as Endangered throughout its range by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and as such is featured on a Recovery Plan for the Kauai Plant Cluster, which was developed in 1995 (5).

For more information on the lo'ulu, see:

• Center for Plant Conservation:
  http://www.centerforplantconservation.org/Collection/CPC_ViewProfile.asp?CPCNum=12967
• NatureServe Explorer:
  http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/NatureServe?searchName=Pritchardia+viscosa