Wikstroemia oahuensis
{{Short description|Species of shrub}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Starr_041229-2701_Wikstroemia_oahuensis.jpg
|image_caption = {{okina}}Ākia; O{{okina}}ahu false ohelo
|image_alt = ʻĀkia; Oʻahu false ohelo
|genus = Wikstroemia
|species = oahuensis
|authority = (A.Gray) Rock 1913
|synonyms =
- Daphne oahuensis (A.Gray) Halda
- Diplomorpha oahuensis (A.Gray) A. Heller
- Wikstroemia foetida var. oahuensis A.Gray
|subdivision_ranks = Varieties
|subdivision =
- Wikstroemia oahuensis var. oahuensis
- Wikstroemia oahuensis var. palustris (Hochr.) B.Peterson 1989
}}
Wikstroemia oahuensis, the {{okina}}Ākia or O{{okina}}ahu false ohelo, is a species of flowering shrub in the mezereon family, Thymelaeaceae, that is endemic to Hawai{{okina}}i.{{cite web |url=http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/forestry/data/CommonTreesHI/CFT_Wikstroemia_oahuensis.pdf |title=ʻAkia |first=Elbert L. |last=Little Jr. |author2=Roger G. Skolmen |publisher=United States Forest Service |year=1989}}
Description
In the wild, {{okina}}ākia can grow to {{convert|5|ft|m}} tall, but in cultivation it usually reaches {{convert|3|ft|m}} with a diameter of {{convert|10|ft|m}}. The young branches are gray, yellow, or reddish brown. The leaves grow with two leaves opposite each other on the branch, overlapping, and are dark green or grayish on the upper surface and lighter green underneath. They are oval to round and usually under {{convert|1|in|cm}} long. This species is highly variable, with the leaves ranging from large and long to small and round. The stems do not snap but peel when bent. It flowers irregularly throughout the year, but produces fewer flowers when the plant has mature fruit. The tubular yellow to yellow-green flowers may be perfect (bisexual) or unisexual (either male or female), and less than {{convert|0.5|in|cm}} long.{{cite web |url=http://www.ntbg.org/plants/plant_details.php |title=Wikstroemia oahuensis |work=Meet the Plants |publisher=National Tropical Botanical Garden |accessdate=2009-02-28}} The dwarf bog form from Kaua{{okina}}i is sometimes recognized as a separate species, W. palustris.
Distribution
There are 12 Wikstroemia species endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Wikstroemia oahuensis is a relatively common plant in a wide variety of habitats on the islands of Kaua{{okina}}i, O{{okina}}ahu, Moloka{{okina}}i, Lāna{{okina}}i, and Maui. It inhabits ridges and rocky areas, hala (Pandanus tectorius) forest, mesic forest, wet forest, and bogs at elevations of {{convert|100|–|1400|m|ft}}.{{cite web |url=http://www2.bishopmuseum.org/ethnobotanydb/resultsdetailed.asp?search=akia |title=ʻakia, kauhi, ʻakia manolo |work=Hawaiian Ethnobotany Online Database |publisher=Bernice P. Bishop Museum |access-date=2009-02-28 |archive-date=2016-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310202050/http://bishopmuseum.org/ethnobotanydb/resultsdetailed.asp?search=akia |url-status=dead }}
Ecology
The bacteria species Flavobacterium akiainvivens was originally isolated from rotting {{okina}}ākia wood, and the shrub lends it its name.{{cite journal|last1=Kuo|first1=Iris|last2=Saw|first2=Jimmy|last3=Kapan|first3=Durrell D.|last4=Christensen|first4=Stephanie|last5=Kaneshiro|first5=Kenneth Y.|last6=Donachie|first6=Stuart P.|title=Flavobacterium akiainvivens sp. nov., from decaying wood of Wikstroemia oahuensis, Hawai'i, and emended description of the genus Flavobacterium|journal=International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology|date=1 September 2013|volume=63|issue=9|pages=3280–3286|doi=10.1099/ijs.0.047217-0|pmid=23475344|language=English|issn=1466-5034|oclc=5157565552}}
Uses
=Toxicity=
Native Hawaiians used this species to stupefy fish. A poison made from {{okina}}ākia, in combination with other plants, was used to execute criminals.
=Medicinal=
Hawaiian medicinal uses are as a laxative and for treatment of asthma. Possible anti-tumor activity.
=Other=
{{okina}}Ākia is used in Hawai{{okina}}i as landscape specimen. Seeds and flowers are used to make beautiful lei.
References
{{Commons category}}
{{Reflist}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q7999901}}
Category:Endemic flora of Hawaii