Melicope degeneri

Melicope degeneri
Conservation status
Critically Imperiled (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Sapindales
Family:	Rutaceae
Genus:	Melicope
Species:	M. degeneri
Binomial name
Melicope degeneri (B.C.Stone) T.G.Hartley & B.C.Stone

Melicope degeneri is a rare species of flowering plant in the citrus family known by the common names Kokee Stream melicope^[1] and Degener's pelea.^[2] It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Kauai. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States. Like other Hawaiian Melicope, this species is known as alani.^[3]

This is a shrub or tree with oppositely arranged leaves, flowers usually in clusters of three, and cube-shaped fruits.^[2] It grows in wet mountain forests.^[4]

The type specimen of this plant was collected in 1926.^[2] The species was not seen again and was thought to be extinct until its 1993 rediscovery. Today there are 22 or 23 known individuals.^[4]

This plant is threatened by the degradation of its habitat by the activity of feral goats and pigs and competition with non-native plants.^[2]

References

1. ^ USDA Plants Profile
2. ^ ^{a b c d} Melicope degeneri. The Nature Conservancy.
3. ^ USFWS. Species Reports: Plants.
4. ^ ^{a b} USFWS. Determination of Endangered Status for 48 Species on Kauai and Designation of Critical Habitat; Final Rule. Federal Register April 13, 2010.