Plant Profile
Pisonia brunoniana
Pāpala, Pāpala kēpau
Main Plant Information
Genus
Pisonia
Species
brunoniana
Hawaiian Names with Diacritics
- Pāpala
- Pāpala kēpau
Hawaiian Names
- Papala
- Papala kepau
Common Names
- Australasian catchbird tree
- Australasian catchbirdtree
Did You Know…?
Even though the fruits of pāpala kēpau are extremely sticky and the adhesive strong enough to trap small birds, when touching the fruits, no sticky residue is left on a personʻs fingers!
Plant Characteristics
Distribution Status
Indigenous
Endangered Species Status
No Status
Plant Form / Growth Habit
- Tree
Mature Size, Height (in feet)
- Shrub, Tall, Greater than 10
- Tree, Small, 15 to 30
Mature Size, Width
Papala kepau has a spread of 10 feet or more.
Life Span
Long lived (Greater than 5 years)
Landscape Uses
- Provides Shade
- Screening
- Specimen Plant
Additional Landscape Use Information
A fascinating tree with a unique feature not appreciated by everyone. The fruit of pāpala kēpau are sticky and will ensnare small creatures such as birds, lizards & insects. If the immobilized victims cannot free themselves they will eventually succumb to a slow death.
The fruit also readily adhere to pets, farm animals, clothing, shoes, skin, hair and most anything else they come into contact with. Use discretion as to the planting locale and setting as it could become somewhat of a nuisance tree. This is not to paint a negative picture of this wonderfully designed plant. It’s “buyer beware.”
But, although the fruits are sticky to the touch, they do not leave a sticky film behind on your fingers.
Source of Fragrance
- Flowers
Additional Fragrance Information
Papala kepau flowers are moderately fragrant.
Plant Produces Flowers
Yes
Flower Characteristics
Flower Type
Not Showy
Flower Colors
- Greenish-White
- Purple
Leaf Characteristics
Plant texture
- Coarse
Leaf Colors
- Dark Green
Pests and Diseases
Additional Pest & Disease Information
Papala kepau is subject to attacks by ants, scales, mealybugs, and aphids.
Growth Requirements
Fertilizer
An application of a balanced slow release fertilize with minor elements every 6 months. Foliar feed monthly with kelp or fish emulsion, or a water-soluble fertilizer with a dilution of one half to one third of recommended strength.
Water Requirements
- Dry
Soil must be well drained
Yes
Light Conditions
- Full sun
- Partial sun
Tolerances
- Drought
Environmental Information
Natural Range
- Oʻahu
- Molokaʻi
- Lānaʻi
- Maui
- Hawaiʻi
Natural Zones (Elevation in feet, Rainfall in inches)
- 1000 to 1999, 0 to 50 (Dry)
- 2000 to 2999, 0 to 50 (Dry)
- 3000 to 3999, 0 to 50 (Dry)
- 4000 to 4999, 0 to 50 (Dry)
Habitat
- Terrestrial
Additional Habitat Information
This pāpala kēpau ( P. brunoniana ) is occasionally found in dry to mesic forests from 1395 to over 4000 feet and is nowhere a main component of the vegetation.
Special Features and Information
General Information
Pāpala kēpau belong to the Four-o’clock family or Nyctaginaceae of some 50 species, primarily in tropical America and Pacific Islands.
The garden four-o’clock ( Mirabilis jalapa ) is a non-native relative found in the islands and has been named pua ahiahi, which literally means “late afternoon [becoming evening] flower.”
Other family members native to the Hawaiian Islands are alena ( Boerhavia spp.) with two indigenous and one endemic species.
There are five species of Pisonia in the Hawaiian Archipelago, two of which are endemic.
Etymology
The generic name Pisonia is named for William Piso (ca. 1611-1678), Dutch physician, pharmacist, botanist, and early writer on medicinal plants of Brazil.
Regarding the specific epithet The Names of Plants makes this comment: “Brunonia, brunonianus -a -um, brunonis Smaethman’s* name to commemorate Robert Brown (vide infra) (Brunoniaceae) brunonianus -a -um, brunonis -is -e for Robert Brown FRS (1773–1858), English botanist.” [4]
- Henry Smeathman (1742–1786) was an English naturalist. He spend four years in and around the Sierra Leone studying the natural history.
Hawaiian Names:
The name pāpala also is used for the native species of Charpentiera .
Hawaiian Dictionaries defines kēpau as “lead, pitch, tar, resin, pewter; gum, as on ripe breadfruit; any sticky juice, as of pāpala.” [7]
Early Hawaiian Use
Bird Catching:
Pāpala kēpau are truly fascinating plants with a sad, but interesting, cultural history. A sinistral use for the sticky fruit was to trap native birds. [6] The captured victims provided feathers for the strikingly colorful cloaks (capes), helmets, lei, images and kāhili. Birds such as ‘ō’ō and mamo were plucked of their few moulting yellow feathers and set free to grow more for the next season. However, this was not the case with the ʻiʻiwi, ʻamakihi and ʻapapane which were totally covered with red- or green-colored feathers and would not have survived the plucking. They were captured, plucked and eaten. [1,3]
Medicinal:
The milky sap from pāpala kēpau ( Pisonia spp.) was used for cuts. The cooked leaves were used to cure pāʻaoʻao (childhood disease with physical weakening) and for lepo paʻa (constipation). [2]
Other Uses:
The early Hawaiians used an adhesive gum for repairing bowls. [1]
Additional References
[1] “Arts and Crafts of Hawaii” by Te Rangi Hiroa (Sir Peter H. Buck), pages 45, 217-218.
[2] “Native Hawaiian Medicine–Volume III” by The Rev. Kaluna M. Kaʻaiakamanu, pages 84-85.
[3] “Resource Units in Hawaiian Culture” by Donald D. Kilolani Mitchell, page 93.
[4] “The Names of Plants” by David Gledhill, pages 78, 79.
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Smeathman [Accessed on 09/30/11]
[6] “Lāʻau Hawaiʻi: Traditional Hawaiian Uses of Plants” by Isabella Aiona Abbott, page 106.
[7] Hawaiian Dictionaries http://www.wehewehe.org
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Pisonia brunoniana
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