Kauna'oa Cuscuta sandwichiana
Kauna'oa is an annual vine native to Hawaii. A host for pollen-specialist native bees.
More about this plant
Cuscuta sandwichiana is a parasitic vine and the only member of the genus Cuscuta that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It parasitizes a wide variety of indigenous, endemic and introduced plants on all of the main Hawaiian islands. It grows in coastal areas with sandy soils from sea level elevation to 975 feet. The indigenous kaunaʻoa pehu Cassytha filiformis is a similar-looking species with the same parasitic nature. It is an unrelated plant in the laurel family Lauraceae which can be distinguished by its larger, coarser yellowish-green stems. Wikipedia →
Growing & care
USDA PLANTS · TRY- Lifespan
- Annual
Wildlife & pollinators
How pollinator value is scored →❧ Caterpillar hosts ~2 caterpillar species
Cuscuta supports ~2 caterpillar species.
Native butterfly & moth caterpillars are the base of the terrestrial food web — most songbirds rear their young almost entirely on them. As a host for native Lepidoptera this is a modest genus.
Recorded feeding on Cuscuta in North America, including:
✦ Bees specialist-bee host
Specialist native bees depend on it.
Some native bees are pollen specialists (oligolectic) — they raise young only on pollen from particular plant genera. Cuscuta is a recorded specialist-bee host, so losing it can mean losing the bee that relies on it.
Related plants
More Cuscuta →
Sources for this entry (13) Open & cited
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