Loulu

Loulu

Usually found at high elevations on Oahu hiking trails. Remember when you were little and made paper fans by doing many folds. That is what the leaves look like. Used in native garden landscapes.

Background Information

There are 19 endemic species of Loulu palms. On Oahu, there are 3 species that I know of. In Ancient Hawaii, Hawaiians ate the young fruit of the loulu. In modern times, it can be used as shelter when you are stuck on the Ko'olaus with no tent. Pritchardia. One interesting fact is that many of the endemic Loulu species are restricted to valleys, that's pretty rare.

Three Corners Summit 2018

Loulu

This species of Loulu occurs in the Northern Waianaes. The scientific name is pritchardia kaalae and is listed as federally endangered with only 1,400 plants left in the wild.

Loulu

Here is an interesting Loulu. The scientific name is pritchardia kahukuensis. It is similar to the martii species, but kahukuensis has smaller fruit than martii, crown looks more like a sphere. The tree grows huge, the pictures show a tree about 40 feet tall.

Pic taken between Pupukea-Laie in 2012

Pic taken at Waimalu Meadow 2015

Loulu

I call this Loulu, the Loulu of the Ko'olau Range. Its scientific name is pritchardia martii and is the more common Loulu you see while hiking in the Ko'olaus.

Loulu

I got fascinated by all the different Loulu palms especially when hiking in the botanical gardens. This Loulu is called pritchardia remota. This tree is endemic to the island of Nihoa which is about 130 miles from Kauai. The features of this palm that can be distinguished form other Loulu is its wavy leaves. You can see this particular species at the Koko Crater Botanical Gardens.

Loulu

This Loulu is almost extinct. I saw it at the Botanical Garden, it is called pritchardia hillenbrandii. The only place it exist is on Huelo & Mokapa Islet.

Source of pic: Palmpedia.net

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