Search / Plant Profile / Gouania hillebrandii

Plant Profile

Hairy-fruit Chewstick (Gouania hillebrandii)

Closeup of flowering branches for a native specimen. Photo Credit: Steve Perlman

Global Rank: G1 - Critically Imperiled
Legal Status: Federally Endangered
Family: Rhamnaceae
State: HI
Nature Serve ID: 136200
Lifeform: Shrub
Date Inducted in National Collection: 07/09/1992

Description:

There are two endangered Gouania species endemic to Hawaii (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [USFWS] 2001). G. hillebrandii, a member of the Buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae) is an erect to sprawling shrub that has pale to brown pilose stems with elliptic blades. The sweet fragrant flowers of G. hillebrandii are perfect (Wagner et al. 1999) and white, producing brown seeds (USFWS 1990). Flowering, fruiting, and vegetative growth occur mostly during the wet months of winter and early spring (USFWS 1996).

Where is Hairy-fruit Chewstick (Gouania hillebrandii) located in the wild?

Habitat:

G. hillebrandii is restricted to dry forests between 244 to 518 meters (800 to 1,700 ft) elevation (USFWS 1990).

Distribution:

G. hillebrandii was formerly found on Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Kaho'olawe. Today it is restricted to small pasture areas on slopes in the Lahaina district, west Maui (Wagner et al. 1999).

States & Provinces:

Hairy-fruit Chewstick can be found in Hawaii

Which CPC Partners conserve Hairy-fruit Chewstick (Gouania hillebrandii)?

National Tropical Botanical Garden

Not Sponsored

Assigned 06/09/17

Harold L. Lyon Arboretum

Not Sponsored

Assigned 07/24/23

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

Nature Serve Biotics

05/02/2017

This species has been recorded from the islands of Molokai, Maui, Lanai, and Kahoolawe. Currently, it is known to be extant only on Molokai and Maui, with 6 occurrences containing fewer than 3,000 plants. The species and its habitats are threatened by cattle, feral goats and pigs, and the invasion of alien plant species. Fire is also a potential threat.

01/01/2010

Threats to G. hillebrandii include browsing and grazing by feral and domestic livestock; removal of native vegetation and subsequent replacement by alien species; infestation by the exotic hibiscus snow scale (Pinnaspis strachani), and an unknown leaf-cut

01/01/2010

Number of Populations: 3 (USFWS 2001) Number of Plants: 1700-2100 (USFWS 2001)

01/01/2010

The Maui Invasive Species Committee (MISC), a federal-state-private partnership is working to prevent, contain, or eradicate the most serious plant and animal invasions that threaten G. hillebrandii (MISC 2001).

01/01/2010

The main management objective is to protect the natural population of G. hillebrandii from threats of browsing and trampling by cattle and other feral or domestic live stock, from insect infestation, competition from alien plants, and from fire. Feral and domestic livestock have probably been the greatest threat historically to the species habitat. Trampling also promoted erosion and compacted soils, while destroying vegetation and litter important to soil-water relations. The National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG) currently has ex situ holdings of 713 seeds in its seed bank, which represents two out of the three populations

01/01/2010

1. Undertake management in situ to ensure the continued existence of G. hillebrandii shrub including control of the hibiscus snow scale. 2. Terminating grazing leases on the land that G. hillebrandii exists. 3. Monitoring the population of G. hillebrandii. 4. Controlling insect predators, and preventing and controlling fires. 5. Conduct pollination biology studies on G. hillebrandii. 6. Map genetic diversity in the surviving populations of G. hillebrandii. 7. Test the influence of weeding and fencing on populations of G. hillebrandii. Recommendations derived from M.H. Chapin, M. Maunder, and USFWS (1996).

01/01/2010

1. Survey ex situ holdings and conduct molecular fingerprinting. 2. Establish secure ex situ stocks with full founder representation. 3. Develop proper horticultural protocols and pest management for G. hillebrandii. Recommendations derived from M.H. Chapin and M. Maunder.