The Recovery Plan for Kokia cookei Kokia cookei, also known by its common Hawaiian name as Koki`o, is a small deciduous (sheds seasonally or by stages) tree. The only wild individual of this century was about 10 feet in height. Map by USFWS/Rod Low and Susan Machida This tree is known only from the island of Moloka`i and has been described as the rarest plant in the world. When it was discovered in the 1860s, only three trees of the species were found. By the 20th century, only a single wild tree of K. cookei  could be found. The species was wiped out from the wild in 1918. Currently, there are no naturally occurring populations. The species exists only in cultivation at two locations and in managed outplantings at three sites. The total number of individual plants is 10. Photo courtesy of the University of Hawaii Habitat & Distribution: Historically, K. cookei was found in the wild only in remnant dryland forest near Mahana, northeast of Pu`u Nana, western Moloka`i, at approximately 660 feet. The former habitat of K. cookei appears most similar to modern dryland forest at Kanepuu, Lanai`, and leeward (northeast) Haleakala, Maui, at 1,000-2,000 feet elevation. Today, this tree is extinct in the wild. Ten grafted plants are found in five different locations on the islands of Maui, Moloka`i, and O`ahu. Recovery: K. cookei was added to the Federal list of endangered and threatened species in 1979. Historically, the reasons for the decline and eventual extinction of this tree were habitat conversion, introduced grazing mammals, loss of native pollinators, and seed predation by insect larvae. The current threats are low number of individuals and populations, lack of naturally rooted plants, and lack of viable seed production. The State of Hawai`i has tried five types of propagation with K. cookei  seeds; cuttings; grafting; tissue culture; and air layering. Considerable effort to propagate this tree has been carried out by several private individuals and nongovernmental organizations such as the National Tropical Botanical Garden, Waimea Arboretum and Botanical Garden, the University of Hawai`i's Lyon Arboretum, and The Nature Conservancy of Hawai`i. Despite the heroic efforts to save this species, K. cookei  is not safe from the threat of extinction. The recovery plan identifies three essential goals that must be met to reduce the chances of random naturally occurring events causing the extinction of this tree: increase the number of individuals and natural populations, produce K. cookei  plants that produce viable seeds, and reestablish the species in native habitat that can sustain natural reproduction of the species. Top of Page