FLORA OF HAWAIIAN ISLANDS HITCHCOCK. 453 



troducing the lantana and guava. The lantana (L. camara) is cul- 

 tivated for ornament because of the flat-topped clusters of pink or 

 lavender parti-colored flowers. It has run wild and now occupies 

 hundreds of acres on the drier parts of the slopes below the rain 

 forest. It is of no value and occupies the soil to the exclusion of 

 pasture plants. The guava, cultivated for its fruit, about the size 

 and appearance of a lemon, from which the delicious guava jelly is 

 made, has also run wild and occupies large areas of pasture land, or 

 what would be pasture if these two pestiferous shrubs could be ex- 

 terminated. 



Another introduced shrub or tree is the prickly-pear cactus 

 (0 punt la megacantha) . This plant is now common on the dry parts 

 of all the islands, sometimes forming forests. However, it is not 

 entirely a pest, for in times of stress it furnishes no inconsiderable 

 proportion of the forage on the ranches, because the cattle have 

 learned to eat the juicy joints in spite of the numerous needlelike 

 spines. 



The native flora has been almost entirely replaced by introduced 

 weeds in all the lowlands, especially in the vicinity of the towns. 



All the islands are mountainous. Kauai, a nearly circular island, 

 is mountainous through the interior, the highest point being Waial- 

 eale, in the center (5,170 feet). Oahu has two ranges of mountains — 

 the Koolau Range on the east and the Waianae Eange on the west, 

 the highest point being Mount Kaala, in the latter range (4,030 

 feet). Molokai, an oblong island, has a range in the eastern half 

 along the north side, the highest point of which is Kamakua Peak 

 (4,958 feet). Maui consists of two mountain masses — East and West 

 Maui — with a low isthmus between. The highest peak of West Maui 

 is Puu Kukui (5,788 feet). East Maui is centered around the im- 

 mense crater Haleakala, said to be the largest crater in the world. 

 The highest part of the rim, a point on the western side, has an alti- 

 tude of 10,032 feet. Lanai, a small island west of Maui, is mountain- 

 ous on the eastern side, rising there to about 3,500 feet. Hawaii, the 

 largest island of the group, is truly majestic in the height of its 

 mountains. There are four mountain groups. The mass of the island 

 is made up mainly of the two great cones, Mauna Kea (13,825 feet) 

 and Mauna Loa (13,675 feet. ) . There are two lesser mountain groups — 

 the Hualalai Mountains (8,269 feet), near the west coast, and the 

 Kohala Mountains (5,489 feet), in the projection at the northwest 

 corner. These mountains have a high rainfall where they intercept 

 the trade wind, the region of greatest precipitation being at the sum- 

 mit and somewhat to the leeward (except the high peaks as noted 

 below). The Hualalai Mountains are comparatively dry because 

 they are in the lee of Mauna Kea. In many places the slope is grad- 

 ual from sea to summit. In fact, all the mountains are, in general, 



65133°— sm 1917 30 



