| The invading Myrica
trees are crowding out the `ohi`a in the Mid-Elevation Woodland area,
particularly around the Puhimau Hot Spot.
In some places, you get a nearly complete stand of Myrica. In other places, smaller Myrica trees can be seen adjacent to the older `ohi`a residents in the forest. The small forms of this evergreen tree are shrubby and multi-stemmed. As the tree gets larger, a single trunk develops and the tree takes on a pyramid shape (Stone and Pratt 1994: 132). Mature trees can be 50 feet tall (Stone and Pratt 1994: 132). |
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| The leaves are dark, shiny green. They are relatively narrow and about two inches long. The margin may have teeth, but these are irregularly spaced. |  |
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| The flowers are small
and inconspicuous. The reddish to purple fruits are small (less
than a quarter inch across) and have a hard coat. Inside the coat are
between one and five seeds (Stone and Pratt 1994: 132).
The fruits are very abundant. There may be tens of thousands of fruit produced by a single tree (Stone and Pratt 1994: 132). |
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Stone and Pratt (1994: 132-13) have given a good overview of the invasion of Myrica faya in the Park.
This tree was first seen near the Kilauea Military Camp in 1961. It spread rapidly. Within 16 years it had invaded 9,000 acres in the Park. By 1985, it could be found in more than 30 thousand acres. Part of the speed of its spread is attributed to the nitrogen fixing capabilities of this species. This seems to give it a competitive advantage on nutrient poor soils. `Ohi`a trees look like nurse trees, since myrica are often seen growing at the base. What is more likely is that birds perch on `ohi`a branches after having eaten myrica seeds. Once myrica forms a closed canopy, it is unlikely that anything else will grow in this area.
| The extensive Myrica forest along the Chain of Craters road below the Puhimau Hot Spot has many dying trees. You can see the dead trees still standing as leafless, gray skeletons. While most of these appear to be Myrica individuals, some `ohi`a trees are also dead. The two-spotted leaf hopper appears to be the cause of this loss of trees. |  |
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