Photo of "Phyllostegia hispida," or "mint-less mint" vine growing on the Hawaiian island of Molekai.(Hank Oppenheimer/Plant Extinction Prevention Program/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/AP Images)
Endangered Species List Grows
Rare Hawaiian plant declared endangered
Quick, name the first endangered or threatened animal you can think of.
What was your pick? Grizzly bears? Humpback whales? Prairie dogs?
Now name the first endangered or threatened plant you can think of.
It's a little harder to think of a plant that is listed as "endangered" or "threatened," isn't it?
Endangered plant species may not get the same attention as endangered animal species, but there are many. And the list is growing.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it is listing a rare Hawaiian vine as "endangered" under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).
The ESA protects species and habitats from activities that might harm them.
The vine is so rare that it has never earned a common name. It is known only by its scientific name: Phyllostegia hispida (fil-o-STEE-jee-a HIS-pi-da).
The vine grows only in the wet forests on the Hawaiian island of Molokai. It has lots of branches that spread out loosely to form a large tangled mass.
It's a member of the mint family, but the vine doesn't have a strong aroma, or smell, like its relatives. Cheryl Phillipson of the Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office told Scholastic News Online they have nicknamed the plant "mint-less mint" for its odorless quality.
There are many threats to the 238 "mint-less mint" vines that still exist. The species could be wiped out by natural disasters like hurricanes or outbreaks of plant diseases.
Wild pigs are also an enemy of the Hawaiian vine. They like to feed on its chewy leaves.
Hawaii's Department of Natural Resources has put up fences in some areas to protect the vines from wild pigs and other animals that might want to snack on the plant.
And there are efforts under way to boost the rare plant's numbers.
According to the Fish and Wildlife service, 10 individual plants of the Hawaiian vine were found growing in the wild last year. Botanists have taken seedlings from those vines and are growing new specimens that will be reintroduced to the wild when they are ready.
"We are heartened that this one extremely endangered Hawaiian plant will finally receive the protection it so badly needs to survive," said Noah Greenwald, a director with the Center for Biological Diversity.
Hawaii is currently home to 329 endangered species of plants and animals—more than any other state. Greenwald hopes this listing will bring more attention to Hawaii's 251 other species of plants and animals that are candidates for protection under ESA.
The rare Hawaiian vine is the first plant species that the Obama administration has listed as "endangered."
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