''Alyxia stellata'', known as ''maile'' in Hawaiian, is a species of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...
in the
dogbane
Dogbane, dog-bane (plant), bane, dog's bane, and other variations, some of them regional and some transient, are names for certain plants that are reputed to kill or repel dogs; "Bane (plant), bane" originally meant "slayer", and was later appli ...
family, ''
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae (, from '' Apocynum'', Greek for "dog-away") is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family, because some taxa were used as dog poison. Notable mem ...
'', that is native to the tropical Pacific from
Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
to
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
. It grows as either a twining
liana
A liana is a long-Plant stem, stemmed Woody plant, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the Canopy (biology), canopy in search of direct sunlight. T ...
, scandent shrub, or small erect
shrub
A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...
, and is one of the few
vine
A vine is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas, or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselves, for instance, when used in wicker work.Jackson; Benjamin; Da ...
s that are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to the islands. The leaves are usually
ternate
Ternate (), also known as the City of Ternate (; ), is the
List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city with the largest population in the province of North Maluku and an island in the Maluku Islands, Indonesia. It was the ''de facto'' provi ...
, sometimes opposite, and can show both types on the same stem.Wagner et al. 1990 Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaii 1, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, p. 214 Flowers are quite inconspicuous and have a sweet and light fragrance of honey. The bark is most fragrant and exudes a slightly sticky, milky sap when punctured, characteristic of the family Apocynaceae. The entire plant contains
coumarin
Coumarin () or 2''H''-chromen-2-one is an aromatic organic chemical compound with formula . Its molecule can be described as a benzene molecule with two adjacent hydrogen atoms replaced by an unsaturated lactone ring , forming a second six-me ...
, a sweet-smelling compound that is also present in vanilla grass (''
Anthoxanthum odoratum
''Anthoxanthum odoratum'' is a short-lived perennial plant, perennial grass, commonly known as sweet vernal grass, that is native to acidic grassland in Eurasia and northern Africa. It is grown as a lawn grass and a house plant, due to its swee ...
Galium odoratum
''Galium odoratum'', the sweet woodruff or sweetscented bedstraw, is a flowering perennial plant in the family Rubiaceae, native to much of Europe. It is widely cultivated for its flowers and its sweet-smelling foliage.
Description
A herbaceous ...
'') and mullein (''Verbascum'' spp.). Fruit are oval and dark purple when ripe. ''Maile'' is a morphologically variable plant and the Hawaiian names reflect this (see Ethnobotany section).
Distribution and habitat
''Alyxia stellata'' ranges from northeastern Queensland to the tropical Pacific, including the Caroline Islands, Cook Islands, Fiji, Hawaiian Islands, Marianas, Marquesas, New Caledonia, Niue, Pitcairn Islands, Samoan Islands, Society Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuamotu, Tubuai Islands, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna.
''Maile'' can occur in most types of vegetation at elevations from on all of the main Hawaiian Islands, however it is believed that both Kahoolawe and
Niihau
Niihau (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ), anglicized as Niihau ( ), is the seventh largest island in Hawaii and the westernmost of the main islands. It is southwest of Kauai, Kauai across the Channels of the Hawaiian Islands#Kaulakahi Channel, Ka ...
likely had populations of the species before large-scale disturbances occurred. Lowland wet forests occur from elevation in the Hawaiian Islands and are prime habitat for ''maile'', receiving of rainfall annually. ''Maile'' is also found in montane mesic and wet communities.
Ethnobotanical uses
Lei
''Maile'' is traditionally and still most popularly used in '' lei''. The vines are prepared and twined together to make an open ''lei'' or if people prefer they can close it. In more rural areas it is typical for someone to pick their own ''maile'' if accessible, however because ''lei maile'' is so desirable, many floral shops carry these kinds of lei. It is one of the only endemic Hawaiian plants grown commercially for lei. Commercial ''maile'' plantationsKa Wai Ola. Office of Hawaiian Affairs. . have become more common as some people feel that imported (non-Hawaiian) ''maile'' is not as fragrant as Hawaiian ''maile''.
Lāau Lapaau
This plant was used medicinally to treat ''puho'', ''puka puhi'', ''kaupo'', and '' na eha moku kukonukonu e ae'' (other cuts). ''Maile kaluhea'' was mashed with ''aukoi'' (''
Senna occidentalis
''Senna occidentalis'', commonly known as coffee senna, styptic weed, or septicweed, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is native to the southern United States of America, Mexico and South America. It is a shrub with Pin ...
'') stalks, ''ahakea'' (''
Bobea
''Bobea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It includes five species, four of which are endemic to Hawaii and one to eastern Queensland in Australia.< ''Bobea'' was named for Jean-Baptiste Bobe-Moreau by
Acacia koa
''Acacia koa'', commonly known as koa, is a species of Flowering plant, flowering tree in the Family (biology), family Fabaceae. It is Endemism, endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, where it is the second most common tree. The highest populations ar ...
'') bark. After water is added to this mixture and heated, it is put on infected areas to clean.
Local tradition
''Lei maile'' are often worn by the groom, and also by the groom's men in weddings which is a lovely sight. For high school proms in Hawaii, the boy is often given a ''lei maile''. Birthdays, graduations, anniversaries and any celebration for that matter are all an occasion for ''lei maile'', however many responsible stewards to the land understand there is not enough ''maile'' to go around for everyone. This ties back in to local ''maile'' plantations that have started up.
Kapa
Kapa
Kapa is a fabric made by native Hawaiians from the bast fibres of certain species of trees and shrubs in the orders Rosales and Malvales. The bark is beaten and felted to achieve a soft texture and dye stamped in geometric patterns.
Description ...
, pounded wauke (''
Broussonetia papyrifera
The paper mulberry (''Broussonetia papyrifera'', syn. ''Morus papyrifera'' L.) is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae. It is native to Asia,Melicope anisata''), ''lauae'' ('' Phymatosorus scolopendria''), ''iliahi'' (''
Santalum
''Santalum'' is a genus of woody flowering plants in the Santalaceae family, the best known and most commercially valuable of which is the Indian sandalwood tree, '' S. album''. Members of the genus are trees or shrubs. Most are root parasit ...
'' spp.) and ''kamani'' (''
Calophyllum inophyllum
''Calophyllum inophyllum'' is a large evergreen plant, commonly called tamanu, oil-nut, mastwood, beach calophyllum or beautyleaf. It is native to the Old World Tropics, from Africa through Asia to Australia and Polynesia. Due to its importance a ...
'').
Conservation
Because ''maile'' is desirable for harvesting it is often incorporated into restoration plantings which can help bring the community into the conservation process.The Garden Island . One study looked at the potential of planting native Hawaiian plants as an
understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the Canopy (biology), forest ca ...
layer to reduce weedy seedlings from sprouting up and gaining hold again in a restored area. ''Maile'', ''māmaki'' (''
Pipturus albidus
''Pipturus albidus'', known as ''māmaki'' (sometimes ''waimea'', for its resemblance to olomea) in Hawaiian and known as Waimea pipturus in English, is a species of flowering plant in the nettle family, Urticaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. ...
Mention of the maile plant occurs in various stories ('' moolelo''), proverbs (''ōlelo noeau''), and in the song (''mele'') "Lei Awapuhi".
Lāieikawai
The maile sisters are a favorite stock characters in Hawaiian romance tales. The story of Lāieikawai tells of five ''Maile'' sisters. ''Maile hai wale'' (brittle ''maile''), ''Maile lau lii'' (small-leaved ''maile''), ''Maile lau nui'' (large-leaved ''maile''), ''Maile kaluhea'' (sweet-scented ''maile''), and ''Maile pakaha'' (blunt-leaved ''maile'').
Kauai's ''maile lau lii'' is often celebrated in song and chant. The ōlelo noeau, ''Ka maile lau lii o Koiahi'' speaks of the "fine-leaved" ''maile'' of Kokee, Kauai which had one of the best and most fragrant ''maile lau lii'' in Hawaii and was praised in old chants. Because ''maile'' was often placed on ''
heiau
A ''heiau'' () is a Hawaiian temple. Made in different architectural styles depending upon their purpose and location, they range from simple earth terraces, to elaborately constructed stone platforms. There are heiau to treat the sick (''heia ...
'' in traditional times, the older generations of Hawaiians say that the fragrance of maile still lingers in those areas where ''heiau'' once stood or are still standing.
Puna and Panaewa
Several ōlelo noeau from the
Hilo
Hilo () is the largest settlement in and the county seat of Hawaii County, Hawaiʻi, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. I ...
Hawaii Island
Hawaii is the largest island in the United States, located in the state of Hawaii, the southernmost state in the union. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of ...
paint a wonderfully fragrant picture of Puna and Panaewa. ''Ka makani hali ala o Puna'', the fragrance-bearing wind of Puna; , Hanakahi is adorned with the fragrance and perfume of Panaewa. These were both places that had a moist climate suitable for maile and other fragrant ferns, as well as the famous hala (''
Pandanus tectorius
''Pandanus tectorius'' is a species of ''Pandanus'' (screwpine) that is native to Malesia, Papuasia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. It grows in the coastal lowlands typically near the edge of the ocean. Common names in English inclu ...
'') from Puna. The phrase ''Puna paia ala'', fragrant walls of Puna, gives reference to the ''hīnano'' blossom which was famously hung inside ''hale'' of that district to scent the house. People traveled to both Puna and Panaewa in order to pick maile, hence those areas being remembered as fragrant.
Mōlī
Mary Kawena Pukui
Mary Abigail Kawenaʻulaokalaniahiʻiakaikapoliopele Naleilehuaapele Wiggin Pukui (20 April 1895 – 21 May 1986), known as Kawena, was a Hawaiian scholar, author, composer, hula expert, and educator.
Life
Pukui was born on April 20, 1895, in ...
tells a story from Kaū on Hawaii Island of a beautiful young woman, Mōlī, whose father will let none other than a fisherman marry her (a good fisherman is well liked and prosperous because of the food he catches; it is also a sign of a much desired hard-working man). A certain worthless fisherman who tricked Mōlī's father by rubbing fish guts (which were thrown out by others) on himself took her hand in marriage and did no work afterwards. Driven to desperation, Mōlī decorated herself with a beautiful lei of ginger (''
Zingiber zerumbet
''Zingiber zerumbet'' is a species of plant in the ginger family with leafy stems growing to about tall. It originates from Asia, but can be found in many tropical countries. Common names include: awapuhi (from spelled with an ʻokina, doubl ...
''), fern and ''maile'' and threw herself over the cliffs at Waiahukini. It is said each year around the time of her death, Mōlī returns and when the wind blows, moaning and wailing can be heard. The ''maile'' fragrance of her lei can also be smelled and if anyone goes there wearing a ''maile'' lei, they will be knocked to the ground., "The eerie man-calling cliff of Mōlīlele".
Keaoua Kekuaokalani
Keaoua Kekuaokalani
Keaoua Kekua-o-kalani (sometimes known as Kaiwi-kuamoo Kekua-o-kalani) was a nephew of the king Kamehameha I, the chief from Hawaii Island who unified the Hawaiian islands.
Family
He was the son of Kamehameha's younger brother Keliimaikai an ...
, a cousin to Liholiho (
Kamehameha II
Kamehameha II (November 1797 – July 14, 1824) was the second king of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaii from 1819 to 1824. His birth name was Liholiho and full name was Kalaninui kua Liholiho i ke kapu ʻIolani. It was lengthened to Kala ...
), objected to the overturn of the '' kapu'' system and with supporters, they gathered together with weapons at the battle of Kuamoo in attempt to restore the ''kapu'' taken away. Hawaiians from the area where the battle took place hold that the fragrance of ''maile'' worn by the Kekuaokalani's warriors into battle can still be smelled.
See also
List of endemic plants in the Mariana Islands
Micronesia is a biodiversity hotspot with an exceptionally high richness of endemic plant species, 10 times higher than that of Hawaii. The Mariana Islands form an archipelago in the northwest of the Micronesian region.
In 2012, Craig M. Costion ...