LIHUE — The Kauai Invasive Species Committee has a new, and rather large, problem on its hands. More than a dozen Bingabing trees — an invasive, large-leafed plant that chokes out nearby vegetation and can reach heights of up to
LIHUE — The Kauai Invasive Species Committee has a new, and rather large, problem on its hands.
More than a dozen Bingabing trees — an invasive, large-leafed plant that chokes out nearby vegetation and can reach heights of up to 30 feet — have been discovered growing on several properties near the mouth of the Hanalei River.
While the species is a new one for KISC, it doesn’t appear to be new for the area, as several trees have already reached mature size.
“We can see that it’s spreading,” said Keren Gundersen, KISC project manager. “So it has been there for awhile.”
The plant, Macaranga mappa, is well established on the Big Island, but was not thought to have found a home on Kauai.
Gundersen said she and other members of KISC were discussing recent survey work and invasive species — including Bingabing — during an Oct. 29 meeting, when Nicolai Barca of The Nature Conservancy mentioned he had seen the plant.
“When the (KISC) crew actually went up there and cruised around the area they realized it was on a lot of properties,” Gundersen said.
She speculates that the ornamental tree was brought there intentionally.
Native to the Philippines, Bingabing is known to be naturalized on the islands of Oahu and Hawaii in wet, low-elevation areas, according to information on the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk (HEAR) project website. Its abundance in the Hilo area is a result of the plants being seeded from aircraft after a large fire.
On Kauai, a total of 81 trees were planted in the Lihue-Koloa Forest Reserve in 1927, but the current status of the forestry planting is uncertain, according to HEAR.
“It’s new for us, but the plant is actually somewhat widespread in the Hilo area,” Gundersen said. “Which is why we’re trying to get a handle on it really quickly.”
KISC plans to begin doing survey work in the area to find out how widespread the Bingabing is. Later, crews will work with private property owners to chop down the trees.
“If we find out this is already widespread, it may not be a target for us,” said Gundersen, adding that it is her hope it localized to just the one area.
Bingabing have huge, umbrella-sized leaves and small pink or red petalless flowers located at the top of the plant. Its relative, Macaranga tanarius, has been established on Kauai for some time, and is characterized by its smaller leaves and greenish flowers.
KISC is encouraging anyone who believes they may have seen the plant to contact the committee office at 821-1490.
“If they have it in their yard, they’re going to know it’s bad,” Gundersen said. “They’re going to quickly find it’s taking over their yard and wish they had not planted it.”
For more information about the Kauai Invasive Species Committee visit http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.org/iscs/kisc.
• Chris D’Angelo, environmental reporter, can be reached at 245-0441 or cdangelo@thegardenisland.com.
