Acaena exigua

Acaena exigua is an extinct species of flowering plant in the rose family known by the common name liliwai.[1] It was endemic to Hawaii, where it was known from Kauaʻi and west Maui. It had not been seen or collected since 1957 and was feared extinct until 1997, when one plant was discovered in a remote montane bog on Maui.[2] The plant died in 2000, and the species is now considered extinct.[3][4]

Acaena exigua
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Acaena
Species:
A. exigua
Binomial name
Acaena exigua

Reason for extinction

The reason for extinction is unknown. While it has been ascribed to rooting by pigs, feral populations have only been present in the vicinity of the population on Kauaʻi for some twenty years, and West Maui is pig-free.[1]

References

  1. Gon, S.M.; Keir, M.; Kwon, J.; Weisenberger, L.; Sporck-Koehler, M. & Chau, M. (2016). "Acaena exigua". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T44072A101442020.
  2. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 1997, Part 2: Notes. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 56, page 6.
  3. Bruegmann, M.M. & Caraway, V. (2003). "Acaena exigua". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2003: e.T44072A10855072. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2003.RLTS.T44072A10855072.en.
  4. US Fish and Wildlife Service. "Acaena exigua: 5 Year Review, Summary and Evaluation" (PDF).


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