Going the Distance

Protecting native species from extinction takes extreme measures

WORDS COCO ZICKOS

Steve Perlman isn’t afraid to dangle from the edge of a crumbling cliff. He doesn’t wear a cape, but he certainly has super powers when it comes to saving native plant species from the brink of extinction. Death-defying tasks are part of his decades-long mission to preserve the lives of Hawai‘i’s most endangered flora—the majority of which cling to life in the most precarious places.

One such plant that Perlman, the University of Hawai‘i’s Plant Extinction Prevention Program’s (PEPP) statewide specialist, is responsible for finding and rescuing is the ÿälula (Brighamia insignis), or “cabbage-on-a-stick.” These peculiar-looking Hawaiian palm-like plants, which have a succulent, baseball-bat-like stem with a cluster of large leaves on top, once thrived on Kaua‘i. However, invasive ungulates, introduced plants and the extinction of a hawk moth that used to pollinate the ÿälula’s tubular, fragrant flowers, are among the factors that contributed to the demise of the species.

Over the centuries, its population declined so intensely that hundreds of individuals were pushed to the literal edge of sheer Näpali Coast cliffs. Sadly, two major hurricanes blew through the islands since Perlman started his task of protecting his favorite native plant in the 1970s, which eliminated all of the wild individuals except for a sole survivor on Kaua‘i. The good news is that Perlman was able to collect seeds from numerous ÿälula prior to their untimely deaths.

Perlman, known as an “extreme botanist,” has had thrilling adventures exploring all of the Hawaiian Islands. He hikes through miles of remote, pristine forests, tackles treacherous terrain, such as slippery rocks along the base of Mt. Wai‘ale‘ale, and has taken several hundred helicopter and boat trips to unfathomable locations. “I love wilderness, forests, hiking up mountains no one else had ever climbed,” says Perlman.

Because of his dedication, many species have made a significant comeback in managed settings. The National Tropical Botanical Garden, where he worked for most of his career scouting remote areas of Kaua‘i for rare plants and collecting various fruits, seeds, spores and cuttings, is home to many of these propagated species. Hundreds of ÿälula, for example, grow at its nurseries and on its grounds, including Limahuli Garden & Preserve. The species also flourishes in dozens of other botanical gardens around the globe.

“I love the work I do and enjoy exploring the South Pacific still,” says Perlman. “I also hate seeing the native plants that I love going extinct before my eyes, so I am passionate about saving them.”

Hawai‘i is the most isolated cluster of islands in the world, which makes its flora special—90 percent of its plants are endemic and found nowhere else in the world. Several million years ago only around 250 species of plants reached Hawai‘i by seed and subsequently evolved into about 1,300 native species. Kaua‘i, the island Perlman primarily focuses on, is the oldest in the island chain and therefore home to the most endemic species.

Isolation, on the other hand, makes plants extremely vulnerable and they are especially sensitive to changes like habitat loss, invasive species and climate change. Hawai‘i, therefore, lays claim to almost 40 percent of the entire endangered plants in the U.S. and is considered the “extinction capital of the world.”

PEPP focuses on about 237 plant species in Hawai‘i that have less than 50 individuals remaining in the wild that are in imminent risk of extinction. Of these, about 16 are potentially extinct in the wild and haven’t been seen in a while. It takes scientists like Perlman to find them, and once they do, PEPP takes immediate measures to protect and perpetuate them.

PEPP consists of eight people who, like Perlman, are committed to saving Hawaiÿi’s native plant species. Among their responsibilities are making sure the wild “founders” are protected at all costs. Various methods to achieve this are the construction of fences to save the individuals from invasive species and the removal of non-native plants. Scientists collect seeds and other parts of the plant to preserve them off-site for storage and propagation. The progeny grow in nurseries, as well as protected locations in the wild in hopes of establishing new populations.

Joan Yoshioka, PEPP’s statewide manager, says there are many highs and lows of plant conservation. The highs include when a species makes a progressive comeback or when a plant is rediscovered in the wild. But the lows can be really low. Sometimes after spending a decade attempting to restore a plant species in the wild, goats will completely obliterate them. “Makes me want to jump for joy and sob helplessly at the same time,” says Yoshioka.

Another difficulty botanists face is mitigating the effects of inbreeding due to diminished genetic diversity. That’s why it’s necessary for the PEPP’s team of brave scientists to keep searching for wild individuals because Yoshioka doesn’t want to witness any more permanent devastating loss of native species. In her lifetime, she’s experienced several plant and bird species’ extinctions and refuses to see any more.

“My motto is, ‘Not on my watch!’” she says. She encourages visitors to “look below the veil of the packaged Hawai‘i” because native species are much different than the commonly seen introduced plants. “I think visitors will be surprised to know that the orchids they see as the image of Hawai‘i are not Hawaiian species at all,” she says.

In fact, Hawai‘i has three orchid species with small, delicate yellow or green flowers that aren’t traditionally “showy.” One of the species is known to have less than 30 individuals left in the wild and the other two are rare. Peristylus holochila has one known individual left on Kaua‘i in the Alaka‘i Swamp, which scientists check every year, as it still creates seeds. It’s called the “Hawaiian bog orchid” because it prefers cooler, high elevations. Perlman rediscovered the plant in the late 1970s on Mt. Wai‘ale‘ale and great strides have been made to propagate the species.

“If these species are lost to extinction, a bit of our Hawai‘i disappears with them and I think a bit of ourselves,” says Yoshioka. “Don’t forget, these were the first Hawaiians…here long before humans set foot on its shores. They deserve our respect because as we all feel at PEPP, they are our family, our ÿohana. And in Hawai‘i, we care for ‘ohana.”

Perlman cares so much about the fate of his botanical family that, even though he’s in his 70s, he has no plans to retire or put away his hiking boots. He will continue taking risky journeys into extremely remote areas where the native Hawaiÿi wilderness grasps for life.

“These species evolved over millions of years. They are the plant diversity of the world. The gems and jewels of creation,” he says. “We should save every single species. Extinction is forever.”

The Plant Extinction Prevention Program protects the rare native species that are threatened and endangered from becoming extinct and lost forever. PEPP is supported by state and federal grants and donations from public and private institutions. To learn more or to donate, please visit pepphi.org.