Lydgate's Pelea / Center For Plant Conservation
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Plant Profile

Lydgate's Pelea (Melicope lydgatei)

Melicope lydgatei, alani. Opaeula, northern Koolau range. Photo Credit: Karl Magnacca © 2014
  • Global Rank: G1 - Critically Imperiled
  • Legal Status: Federally Endangered
  • Family: Rutaceae
  • State: HI
  • Nature Serve ID: 129682
  • Lifeform: Shrub
  • Date Inducted in National Collection:
Description:

M. lydgatei is a small shrub that produces greenish-white flowers in the spring and capsule fruits in the summer. The seeds have very thick coats which supposes possible dormancy. Early Hawaiians used the leaves and bark for its medicinal properties, its wood in the making of canoes, and its fruits for lei garlands.

Where is Lydgate's Pelea (Melicope lydgatei) located in the wild?

Habitat:

This citrus family member is observed on open ridges in mesic forests at elevations up to 671 meters.

Distribution:

Historically, this shrub was found throughout the Ko`olau Mountain Range in O`ahu, but it is now represented by two subpopulations.

States & Provinces:

Lydgate's Pelea can be found in Hawaii

Which CPC Partners conserve Lydgate's Pelea (Melicope lydgatei)?

  • Harold L. Lyon Arboretum

    Not Sponsored
    Conservation Actions
    Assigned 06/09/17
    • CPC's Plant Sponsorship Program provides long term stewardship of rare plants in our National Collection. We are so grateful for all our donors who have made the Plant Sponsorship Program so successful. We are in the process of acknowledging all our wonderful plant sponsorship donors on our website. This is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

    Conservation Actions

    • 10/11/2020
      • Propagation Research

    The Pahole Rare Plant Facility has successfully grown shrubs from two cuttings and have attained both flowering and fruiting stages.

    • 10/11/2020
      • Seed Collection

    The Lyon Arboretum Micropropagation Facility, the National Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Center for Conservation Research and Training Seed Storage Laboratory have collected small numbers of seeds and/or plants for storage and future reproduction of this Melicope species

    • 10/11/2020
      • Seed Collection

    The Lyon Arboretum Micropropagation Facility, the National Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Center for Conservation Research and Training Seed Storage Laboratory have collected small numbers of seeds and/or plants for storage and future reproduction of this Melicope species.

    • 10/11/2020
      • Seed Collection

    The Lyon Arboretum Micropropagation Facility, the National Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Center for Conservation Research and Training Seed Storage Laboratory have collected small numbers of seeds and/or plants for storage and future reproduction of this Melicope species.

    Clarice Mendoza
    • 09/08/2017

    The Lyon Arboretum Micropropagation Facility, the National Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Center for Conservation Research and Training Seed Storage Laboratory have collected small numbers of seeds and/or plants for storage and future reproduction of this Melicope species. The Pahole Rare Plant Facility has successfully grown shrubs from two cuttings and have attained both flowering and fruiting stages.

    Clarice Mendoza
    • 09/08/2017

    Ecological threats to this citrus shrub include competition with introduced plant species such as Koster's curse and cattley guava trees, as well as habitat degradation and predation by feral pigs. The shrub is also susceptible to black twig borers and can be infected with a bathogenic fungus internally as a result. The remaining populations are found on military land and has been threatened by human activities in association with that. Localized catastrophies also pose a threat against this species, possibly wiping out the entire population or genetically significant individuals.

    Nellie Sugii
    • 01/01/2010

    M. lydgatei is threatened by feral pigs and competition from alien plants, but their primary threat is stochastic extinction and/or reduced reproductive vigor because of the few individuals remaining and their restricted distribution.

    Nellie Sugii
    • 01/01/2010

    There are two remaining populations, with fewer than five individuals, distributed over a 7.5-mile distance.

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    Nomenclature
    Taxon Melicope lydgatei
    Authority (Hillebr.) T.G. Hartley & B.C. Stone
    Family Rutaceae
    CPC Number 3166
    ITIS 196032
    USDA MELY
    Duration Perennial
    Common Names Alani | Lydgate's Pelea | Koolau Range melicope
    Associated Scientific Names Pelea apoda | Pelea descendens | Pelea lydgatei | Pelea semiternata | Melicope lydgatei | Pelea parvifolia var. apoda | Pelea parvifolia var. sessilis
    Distribution Historically, this shrub was found throughout the Ko`olau Mountain Range in O`ahu, but it is now represented by two subpopulations.
    State Rank
    State State Rank
    Hawaii S1
    Ecological Relationships

    Photos

    Melicope lydgatei, alani. Opaeula, northern Koolau range. Photo Credit: Karl Magnacca © 2014

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