Kauaʻi record · kba_plant_cheirodendron_trigynum
ʻōlapa
Cheirodendron trigynum
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About ʻōlapa
ʻōlapa (Cheirodendron trigynum) is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands and recorded on Kauaʻi. Tree 5–15 m tall with palmately compound leaves of three to five, occasionally seven, leathery leaflets.
Kauaʻi evidence
Taxonomy, nativity, island-level occurrence, growth form, names, and source conservation assessments are documented in the 2026 census audit. Broader ecology and conservation recommendations still require claim-level source review. Generated imagery is not occurrence evidence.
Names and classification
- Scientific name
- Cheirodendron trigynum
- Common names
- Common cheirodendron · olapa
- Hawaiian names
- ʻōlapa · Ehu · Kauila māhu · Lapalapa · Māhu · ʻŌlapalapa
- Other names
- olapa · Cheirodendron trigynum · Cheirodendron helleri · Cheirodendron helleri var. microcarpum · Cheirodendron helleri var. multiflorum · Cheirodendron helleri var. sodalium · Cheirodendron trigynum var. multiflorum · Aralia trigyna · Cheirodendron gaudichaudii · Cheirodendron trigynum var. acuminatum · Cheirodendron trigynum f. angustior · Cheirodendron trigynum var. confertiflorum · Cheirodendron trigynum var. degeneri · Cheirodendron trigynum var. fosbergii · Cheirodendron trigynum var. halawanum · Cheirodendron trigynum var. hawaiiensis · Cheirodendron trigynum var. hillebrandii · Cheirodendron trigynum var. ilicoides · Cheirodendron trigynum f. latius · Cheirodendron trigynum var. mauiensis · Cheirodendron trigynum var. molokaiense · Cheirodendron trigynum var. oblongum · Cheirodendron trigynum var. osteostigma · Cheirodendron trigynum f. parvulum · Cheirodendron trigynum f. pauciflorum · Cheirodendron trigynum var. rockii · Cheirodendron trigynum var. skottsbergii · Cheirodendron trigynum var. subcordatum · Hedera gaudichaudii · Hedera gaudichaudii var. ovata · Panax gaudichaudii · Common cheirodendron · Ehu · Kauila māhu · Lapalapa · Māhu · ʻŌlapalapa
- Family
- Araliaceae
- Order
- Apiales
- Record type
- Species or taxonomic group
Kauaʻi occurrence and status
- Kauaʻi occurrence
- Recorded on Kauaʻi
- Origin
- Endemic
- Conservation status
- Smithsonian checklist assessment: Apparently Secure; U.S. source status: No Status
- Evidence date
- 2026-10-05
- Evidence limits
- Island-level occurrence is retained; finer locality is intentionally withheld. Growth-form tags describe the taxon across its range, not a measured Kauaʻi population. Checklist source statuses are not a new legal-status determination.
Habitat and ecology
- Habitats
- Wet and mesic montane forest
- Food and resource needs
- Light, water, nutrients, and suitable soil or substrate
- Reproduction
- Viable propagules and suitable establishment conditions
- Shelter
- Suitable soil, substrate, and vegetation structure
- Growth form
- Tree
Threats and conservation
- Threats
- Ungulates, invasive plants, forest decline, climate shift
- Conservation actions
- Forest protection, invasive control, regeneration monitoring
- Monitoring
- Forest protection, invasive control, regeneration monitoring
- Data gaps
- Additional ecological and conservation citations are recommended
Process and seasonal context
- Seasonal timing
- Not assessed
- Seasonal description
- ʻōlapa (Cheirodendron trigynum) is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands and recorded on Kauaʻi. Tree 5–15 m tall with palmately compound leaves of three to five, occasionally seven, leathery leaflets.
Sources and further reading
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Starr_040522-0024_Cheirodendron_trigynum.jpg
- https://doi.org/10.5479/si.32124043
- https://naturalhistory2.si.edu/botany/hawaiianflora/speciesdescr.cfm?genus=Cheirodendron&species=trigynum
- https://naturalhistory2.si.edu/botany/hawaiianflora/result2.cfm?family=araliaceae
