The Hawaiian tropical low shrublands are a

tropical savanna Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is dominated by grass and/or shrubs located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and t ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

in the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...

Geography

These shrublands cover an area of in the leeward lowlands of the main islands and most of the smaller islands, not including the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands which form an ecoregion of their own.

Flora

The ecoregion includes both

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

s and mixed

shrublands Spring Park is a small area in London, England. It is within the London Borough of Bromley and the London Borough of Croydon, straddling the traditional Kent-Surrey border along The Beck. Spring Park is located north of Addington, west of West ...

. Kāwelu (''

Eragrostis variabilis ''Eragrostis variabilis'' is a species of grass known by the common names variable lovegrass, ''kawelu'', ''emoloa'', and ''kalamalo''. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it occurs on all the main islands plus Kure Atoll, Midway Atoll, Pearl and Her ...

''), mauu akiaki (''

Fimbristylis cymosa ''Fimbristylis cymosa'', commonly known as tropical fimbry, or St. John's sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia. The rhizomatous perennial grass-like or herb sedge typically grows to a height of . It blooms betwe ...

''), akiaki (''

Sporobolus virginicus ''Sporobolus virginicus'', known by numerous common names including seashore dropseed, marine couch, sand couch, salt couch grass, saltwater couch, coastal rat-tail grass, and nioaka, is a species of grass with a wide distribution. Description ...

''), and ''

Lepturus repens ''Lepturus'' (common name thintail) is a genus of plants in the grass family, native to Asia, Africa, Australia, and various islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. ; Species * '' Lepturus anadabolavensis'' A.Camus - Madagascar * '' Lepturus a ...

'' are common grassland plants. Shrublands are dominated by ilima (''

Sida fallax ''Sida fallax'', known as yellow ilima or golden mallow, is a species of herbaceous flowering plant in the ''Hibiscus'' family, Malvaceae, indigenous to the Hawaiian Archipelago and other Pacific Islands. Plants may be erect or prostrate and are ...

''), aalii (''

Dodonaea viscosa ''Dodonaea viscosa'', also known as the broadleaf hopbush, is a species of flowering plant in the '' Dodonaea'' (hopbush) genus that has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, the Americas, sout ...

''), naupaka ('' Scaevola'' spp.), hinahina kū kahakai ( ''Heliotropium anomalum'' var. ''argenteum''), kīpūkai ('' Heliotropium curassavicum''), mao (''

Gossypium tomentosum ''Gossypium tomentosum'', commonly known as ''mao'', ''huluhulu'' or Hawaiian cotton, is a species of cotton plant that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It inhabits low shrublands at elevations from sea level to . ''Mao'' is a shrub that reac ...

''), akoko (''

Euphorbia ''Euphorbia'' is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae (in deference to t ...

'' spp.), āheahea (''

Chenopodium oahuense ''Chenopodium oahuense'' is a species of flowering plant in the amaranth family known by the common names ''aweoweo'', ''alaweo'', ''alaweo huna'', ''aheahea'', ''ahea'', ''ahewahewa'', and ''kahaihai''.Myoporum sandwicense ''Myoporum sandwicense'', commonly known as ''naio'', bastard sandalwood or false sandalwood is a species of flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae. It is a tree or shrub highly variable in its form, the size and shape of its l ...

''), kolokolo kahakai (''

Vitex rotundifolia ''Vitex rotundifolia'', the roundleaf chastetree or beach vitex, is a species of flowering plant in the sage family Lamiaceae. It is native to seashores throughout the Pacific. Its range includes continents and islands stretching from India east ...

''), and pūkiawe (''

Styphelia tameiameiae ''Leptecophylla tameiameiae'', known as or in the Hawaiian language, is a species of flowering plant that is native to the Hawaiian and Marquesas Islands. The specific epithet honors King Kamehameha I, who formed the Kingdom of Hawaii. It ...

''). More than 90% of the plant species found in this ecoregion are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found else ...

, including ōhai ('' Sesbania tomentosa''), āwiwi ('' Schenkia sebaeoides''), and wahine noho kula ('' Isodendrion pyrifolium'').

Protected areas

Protected areas that cover part of the ecoregion include

Koko Head District Park Koko or KOKO may refer to: Animals *Koko (gorilla) (1971–2018), a gorilla trained to communicate in American Sign Language *Koko (dog) (2005–2012), the Australian kelpie in the 2011 film ''Red Dog'' * Koko (horse), an Irish racehorse that wo ...

, Diamond Head, Mākua Kea'au Forest Reserve, Ka'ena Point State Park, and Kuaokala Forest Reserve on

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...

External link

References

Low shrublands Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands of the United States * Oceanian ecoregions . . . . . . Natural history of Nihoa Natural history of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands ---- {{Hawaii-geo-stub

Geography

Flora

Protected areas

See also

External link

References