Kauaʻi record · kba_plant_ardisia_crenata
Hilo holly
Ardisia crenata
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About Hilo holly
Hilo holly (Ardisia crenata) is recorded as an established shrub on Kauaʻi. A small upright shrub reaching about 1.5 metres, with branching concentrated in flowering shoots. Its firm alternate leaves have wavy, rolled edges. Small pale flowers are followed by round red fruits about 5–8 millimetres across; these distinguish it from mature black-fruited Ardisia elliptica. Shade-tolerant shrub capable of forming dense understory stands and reducing light available to other vegetation. Reported effects elsewhere do not establish a measured Kauai effect.
Kauaʻi evidence
Established island occurrence follows the Bishop Museum checklist. Diagnostic morphology follows Smithsonian Hawaiian Flora; accepted identity follows Kew WCVP. Generated imagery is not occurrence evidence. Proposed monitoring endpoints are not reported observations, measured effects or causal findings.
Names and classification
- Scientific name
- Ardisia crenata
- Common names
- Hilo holly · bacteria bush · hen’s eyes
- Other names
- Ardisia crenata · Hilo holly · bacteria bush · hen’s eyes · Bladhia crenata
- Record type
- Species
Kauaʻi occurrence and status
- Kauaʻi occurrence
- Recorded on Kauaʻi
- Origin
- Introduced
- Conservation status
- Not yet assessed
- Evidence date
- 2026-10-07
- Evidence limits
- Current extent and island effect sizes are unassessed. Public occurrence remains island-level only.
Habitat and ecology
- Habitats
- Forest understory
- Food and resource needs
- Not yet assessed
- Reproduction
- Local pollinators, flowering schedules, seedling establishment and recruitment rates are not independently assessed.
- Shelter
- Not yet assessed
- Growth form
- Shrub or subshrub
Threats and conservation
- Monitoring
- Understory light availability in occupied versus comparison plots; Native plant cover and recruitment; Shrub density and occupied area. Proposed monitoring endpoints are not reported observations, measured effects or causal findings.
- Data gaps
- Current island population extent and trend · Quantified local environmental effects
Process and seasonal context
- Seasonal timing
- Not yet assessed
- Seasonal description
- Hilo holly (Ardisia crenata) is recorded as an established shrub on Kauaʻi. A small upright shrub reaching about 1.5 metres, with branching concentrated in flowering shoots. Its firm alternate leaves have wavy, rolled edges. Small pale flowers are followed by round red fruits about 5–8 millimetres across; these distinguish it from mature black-fruited Ardisia elliptica. Shade-tolerant shrub capable of forming dense understory stands and reducing light available to other vegetation. Reported effects elsewhere do not establish a measured Kauai effect.