The Makaleha Mountains (pronounced or in
Hawaiian) are a mountain range in
Kauai County
Kauai County ( haw, Kalana o Kauaʻi) (officially known as the County of Kauai) is a county in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It consists of the islands of Kauai, Niihau, Lehua, and Kaula. As of the 2020 Census the population was 73,298. The county ...
on the eastern side of the
Hawaiian island
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 ...
of
Kauai
Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...
. The highest point is approximately above sea level.
The derivation of the
place name
Place may refer to:
Geography
* Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population
** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government
* "Place", a type of street or road name
** Often ...
Makaleha is the Hawaiian word ''makaleha'' (from ''maka'' "eye" and ''leha'' "to lift up") meaning "to wonder at; to admire" or "to lift the eyebrows, as in wonder or admiration".
''Makaleha pritchardia'' or ''
Pritchardia hardyi'' is an
endangered species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...
of
Arecaceae
The Arecaceae is a family of perennial flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are called palm trees ...
palm tree that is endemic to
Hawaiian tropical rainforests
The Hawaiian tropical rainforests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Hawaiian Islands. They cover an area of in the windward lowlands and montane regions of the islands. Coastal mesic forests are found at elevations from se ...
on
Kauai
Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...
. In 1998 only 30 individuals remained in the wild along Powerline Trail between
Wailua and
Princeville.
''Pritchardia hardyi''
2017 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Footnotes
External links
Makaleha Mountains place names
Landforms of Kauai
Mountains of Hawaii
{{Hawaii-geo-stub