Ihiihi, Ihiihilaukea or Hawaiian waterfernMarsileaceae (Pepperwort family)Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands (Niihau, extinct?; extant on Oahu, Molokai)EndangeredOahu (Cultivated); Oahu varietyMarsilea villosa in dark early morning hoursOften, Marsilea spp. have been mistakenly sold on the market as "Shamrock" or "Four-leaf Clover." All belong to very different families: shamrock belongs to Oxalidaceae; clover to Fabaceae, peas and legumes; ihiihi to Marsileaceae, water ferns. And, to confuse matters further, ihiihilaukea leaves fold at night like shamrock (Oxalis spp.) and clover (Trifolium spp.) as shown in this photo here growing with the Hawaiian indigenous aeae (Bacopa monnieri). This process is referred to as Nyctinasty, whereby the leaves and sometimes petals of some plant species fold upward or downward at night, or at times on cloudy days, and return to their horizontal state in the day light hours.ihiihilaukea coming out of nyctinasty
www.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/5187617083/in/photolist-...Leaves of ihiihilaukea in the daytime
www.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/16838117128/in/photolist...EtymologyThe generic name Marsilea is named for Count Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli or Marsili (1656-1730), Italian botanist at Bologna.The Latin specific epithet villosa, hairy, in reference to the hairy rhizomes and sporocarps.*_____* Immature sporocarps (spore case) are villous or hairy; mature sporocarps loose their hair and are bald, or nearly so, when ripe. The Molokai variety, at least under cultivation, appears to retain the hairs more than the Oahu variety.
www.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/5187616783/in/photolist-...nativeplants.hawaii.edu/
