2nd Annual Academic Symposium - Lauren Stutts

Planchonella sandwicensis is a morphologically variable tree endemic to the Hawaiian archipelago. It was formerly divided into multiple species before being regrouped into a single taxon. It has been suggested that environmental factors may contribute to the differences seen throughout P. sandwicensis. We analyzed 298 herbarium specimens from Kaua`i, O`ahu, Moloka`i, Lana`i, Maui, and Hawai`i. We measured leaf width from the midvein to the leaf margin at intervals of fifteen degrees, leaf length, fruit size, apex and base angles, presence of abaxial and adaxial trichomes, and type of leaf margin.

Canonical variants analysis does not allow us to distinguish between interisland populations of P. sandwicensis. Results of multivariate analysis of variance indicate significant differences between interisland populations.

Multiple comparisons tests suggest that leaf length and width are significantly different between western and eastern Hawaiian Islands. Length and width are also significantly correlated with rainfall amounts.