Abstract
Large sections of the montane rain forest community on the windward (eastern) side of the island of Hawai’i experienced death or defoliation of the dominant tree species, ‘öhi’a-lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha Gaud.), since the mid-1960s (Mueller-Dombois and Krajina 1968; Burgan and Nelson 1972; Mueller- Dombois 1980, 1988; US Forest Service 1981; Jacobi et al. 1983, 1988). The appearance of large tracts of forest in apparent decline caused a great deal of concern among biologists, land managers, and the general public over the future quality of the forest watershed and stability of this native rain forest ecosystem with its numerous endangered species (Burgan and Nelson 1972; Anon. 1974; Clark 1974; Alton 1975). Petteys et al. (1975) described the ‘öhi’a forest death as “a severe epidemic”, and they predicted that the native rain forest would be eliminated from this windward habitat in 15 to 25 years if the rate of tree death continued.
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References
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Jacobi, J.D. (1993). Distribution and Dynamics of Metrosideros Dieback on the Island of Hawai’i: Implications for Management Programs. In: Huettl, R.F., Mueller-Dombois, D. (eds) Forest Decline in the Atlantic and Pacific Region. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-76995-5_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-76995-5_17
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