Marquesas Islands.In the Marquesas,
endemic to
Hatutaa, Eiao, Nuku Hiva, Ua Huka, Hiva Oa, Tahuata, Mohotani, Fatu Hiva.
Habitat
Cliffs with dry to mesic shrubland
Elevation
0-594 m
Habit
Shrub, 1‒2 m tall, sparsely branched; branches succulent, 5‒30 mm in diameter, erect, bark smooth, brown, finely puberulent when young, becoming glabrate.
Leaves
Leaves clustered distally on branchlets, alternate, glabrous or glabrate, petiolate; blade narrowly to broadly ovate or elliptic, occasionally narrowly obovate-elliptic, 5‒18 cm long, 2.3‒7.8 cm wide, membranaceous to chartaceous, bright green and shiny adaxially, margin entire, apex acute to obtuse or rounded, base acute to obtuse, usually attenuate and decurrent; petiole 20‒35 mm long, 1‒2 mm wide, winged distally.
Flowers
Inflorescences terminal, cymose-paniculate, 30‒45 cm long including the corollas, branching 1‒3 times, axes glandular pubescent, primary branches 3‒5, each with 3‒6 flowers. Flowers white and fragrant when fresh, each subtended by a linear-subulate bract 7‒10 mm long, pedicel 5‒15 mm long, glandular pubescent; calyx glandular pubescent, limb 5‒8 mm long, lobes linear-oblong, 7‒13 mm long, 1‒2 mm wide; corolla narrowly funnelform, tube 6‒9 cm long, 1.5‒2 mm wide, externally pubescent, limb shallowly to deeply 5-lobed, 25‒35 mm wide, lobes ovate to broadly ovate, 8‒17 mm long, 11‒15 mm wide, connate basally; stamens with anthers 2 mm long, broadly ellipsoid, tips exserted; style slightly longer than corolla tube, exserted for 3‒5 mm, stigma 2‒2.5 mm wide, thick, bilobed.
Fruit
Fruit 10‒12 mm long, 5‒7 mm in diameter, ovoid-ellipsoid, thin, glabrous, dark brown, splitting for ca. ⅔ length into 4 valves.
Seeds
Seeds numerous, ellipsoid to irregularly angular, 0.7‒1.0 mm long, 0.4‒0.6 mm in diameter, dark brown, testa wavy reticulate.
