Posted 10/28/2011
The iconic Haleakala silversword, or hinahina, is in ‘drastic decline,’ report two scientists who have been regularly monitoring the plant. This year, 565 plants were in bloom, a “medium-flowering” year, write Forest Starr and Kim Starr. But in the 11 plots that have been monitored annually since 1982, the number of live silverswords declined by more than 5 percent, all without flowering.
“The total number of live silverswords in the plots has dropped by 80 percent since 1982, from 437 to 86,” they write. “This steep decline has occurred since an all-time high of 488 silverswords in 1989, with 17 of the last 18 years showing decline.”
In addition, no new seedlings were recorded in any of the plots this year, nor in the previous four years.
This year’s census was conducted by the Starrs and Paul Kruschelnycky. To read the report, click here: Silversword Report.
(Photo: Forest and Kim Starr)
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