The Botany of Kauai Island, Hawaii, As Seen on Captain Cook's Voyage, 1778 1

The Botany of Kauai Island, Hawaii, as Seen on Captain Cook's Voyage, 1778 1

HAROLD ST. JOHN2

CAPTAIN JAMES COOK DISCOVERED the and are of a vast variety of shapes, which Sandwich (= Hawaiian) Islands in 1778, probably is effected qy art. Upon the dry and landed at Waimea on Kauai, or, as he sand, about the village, grew a plant, that we called it, Atooi. In search of fresh water and had never seen in these seas, of the size of a food supplies, the crew traded with the nat common thistle, and prickly, like that; but ives who came out in canoes, and they bearing a fine flower, almost resembling a landed .several times. Only with difficulty white poppy. This, with another small one, could they control thievery, especially of were the only uncommon plants, which our metal objects, and they were bothered on short excursion gave us an opportunity of shore by the curious crowds of natives. observing." Twice they were forced to shoot guns at This thistlelike plant, with a white pop them to keep them at a little distance. pylike flower, is without any doubt the en Cook himself reported (1784: 227), demic Argemone glauca Pope. It was ap "Besides the vegetable articles bought by us parently the only plant specimen collected as refreshments, amongst which were, at on Kauai by the expedition. The specimen is least, five or six varieties of plantains, the in the British Museum (Natural History) in island produces bread-fruit; though it seems London, and is labeled as from Captain to be scarce, as we saw only one tree, which Cook's third voyage, collected by David was large, and had some fruit upon it. There Nelson. However, it is quite clear from the are also a few cocoa-palms; yams, as we records that Nelson did not go ashore on were told, for we saw none; the kappe of the Kauai, but Cook recorded that William Friendly Islands, or Virginia arum; the etooa Anderson, a surgeon and botanist, and John tree, and sweet smelling gardenia, or cape Webber, an artist, did accompany him on his jasmine. We saw several trees of the dooe short walk inland to a heiau (= temple). dooe, so useful at Otaheite, as bearing the Anderson suffered from consumption, and oily nuts, which are stuck upon a kind of died on the voyage, 6 months after they left skewer, and burnt as candles. Our people Kauai. The younger botanist, Nelson, made saw them used, in the same manner, on the only considerable collection of plants on Oneeheouw. We were not on shore at Atooi Hawaii Island of the Sandwich group. but in the day time, and then we saw the Nelson himself did not determine or write up natives wearing these nuts, hung on strings, the Hawaiian plants. They were determined round the neck. There is a species of sida, or by Daniel Solander or by Robert Brown. Indian mallow, somewhat altered, by the Both were excellent botanists, but there was climate, from what we saw at Christmas some confusion in the handling of this col Island; the morinda citrifolia, which is called lection. For instance, several specimens were none; a species of convolvulus; the ava, or labeled "Sandwich Is., Capt. Cook's 2nd & intoxicating pepper; and great numbers of 3rd Voyages." This was inexact, since the gourds. These last grow to a very large size, second voyage did not visit the Sandwich Islands. Despite the label on the Argemone, it is quite clear that it was collected by 1 Manuscript received 15 August 1976. 2Bernice P. Bishop Museum, P.O. Box 19000-A, William Anderson, not by David Nelson, Honolulu, Hawaii 96819. who did not set foot on Kauai. 325 326 PACIFIC SCIENCE, Volume 33, October 1979

CULTIVATED, ESPECIALLY CROP, PLANTS CULTIVATED ORNAMENTALS Saccharum officinarum L., "too" (= k6) Cordyline terminalis (L.) Kunth, "etee" sugar cane (= ti), with colored leaves Schizostachyum glaucifolium (Rupr.) Munro, Gardenia taitensis DC., "tearre" (= tiare, "ohe," bamboo Tahiti), Cape jasmine Cocos nucifera L., "eeneeoo" (= niu), The presence of Gardenia is of consider cocoa-trees able interest. The bush has handsome Alocasia macrorrhiza (L.) Sweet, "appe," foliage, and the pretty white blossoms with "kappe" (= 'ape), Virginia arum an enchanting fragrance are a favorite hair Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott, var. anti ornament of the young women of Tahiti and quorum (Schott) Hubb. & Rehd., elsewhere in Polynesia. It is apparently the "tarrow" (= taro), or eddy root only plant used solely as an ornament that Cordyline terminalis (L.) Kunth, "etee" was introduced to Hawaii by the early (= ti) Polynesian colonizers. The vernacular name, Dioscorea alala L., "oohe" (= uhi), yam "tearre" or "tiare," is Tahitian, not Ha Musa X paradisiaca L., plantain (= mai'a or waiian. Evidently Cook or Anderson re cooking banana) membered the shrub and its name from Piper methysticum Forst. f., "ava" or "ova" earlier contacts with it in Tahiti. (= 'awa) Artocarpus altilis (Parkins. ex Z) Fosb., "ooroo" ( = 'ulu), breadfruit NATIVE PLANTS Broussonetia papyrifera (L.) Vent., "touta" or "ewououtte" (= wauke) Pandanus sp., the hala, or screw pine Aleurites moluccana (L.) Willd., "dooe Argemone glauca Pope, prickly white poppy, dooe" (= kukui) (= kala) Ipomoea Batatas (L.) Poir., "hooarra" Sida sp., "areemah" or "hereema" (= 'uala), potatoes (= 'ilima), or Indian mallow Cordia subcordata Lam., (as C. sebestena), Ipomoea sp. (as Convolvulus) "etooa" (= kou) Morinda citrifolia L., "none" (= noni) Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) StandI., "ova" LITERATURE CITED (= ipu), gourd COOK, JAMES. 1784. A voyage to the Pacific Ocean, in 1776-1780. Vol. 2: 1-549, ill. G. Nicol, London.