''Lysimachia maxima'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the family

Primulaceae The Primulaceae , commonly known as the primrose family (but not related to the evening primrose family), are a family of herbaceous and woody flowering plants including some favourite garden plants and wildflowers. Most are perennial though som ...

known by the common name Pelekunu Trail yellow loosestrife.USDA Plants Profile
/ref> It is

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 ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

, where there are only two small populations remaining on the island of Molokai.USFWS
''Lysimachia maxima'' Five-year Review.
January 2008. It is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States. This is a shrub with sprawling branches lined with leaves growing in clusters of three. The solitary flowers are purple in color.''Lysimachia maxima''.

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Nat ...

. The plant grows only in the wet forests of the Pelekunu Mountains of Molokai. The most recent surveys revealed a total of twenty individuals, ten in each of the two populations. The plant is threatened by the

invasion An invasion is a Offensive (military), military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitics, geopolitical Legal entity, entity aggressively enter territory (country subdivision), territory owned by another such entity, gen ...

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...

of animals such as

feral pig The feral pig is a domestic pig which has gone feral, meaning it lives in the wild. They are found mostly in the Americas and Australia. Razorback and wild hog are Americanisms applied to feral pigs or boar-pig hybrids. Definition A feral ...

s and

feral goat The feral goat is the domestic goat (''Capra aegagrus hircus'') when it has become established in the wild. Feral goats occur in many parts of the world. Species Feral goats consist of many breeds of goats, all of which stem from the wild goat ...

s, and plants such as Koster's curse (''Clidemia hirta'') in its habitat. The plant is vulnerable because of its small numbers; a single event could conceivably cause its extinction. Officials have released the leaf-eating insect ''

Lius poseidon ''Lius'' is a genus of beetles in the family Buprestidae, containing the following species: * '' Lius aculeatus'' (Gory, 1841) * '' Lius adonis'' Saunders, 1876 * '' Lius aeneicollis'' Kerremans, 1896 * '' Lius aeneovirens'' Obenberger, 1932 * ...

'' into the habitat as an agent of biological pest control against Koster's curse. It is too early to determine how successful this effort has been.

References

maxima Endemic flora of Hawaii Biota of Molokai {{Primulaceae-stub