Machaerina angustifolia

Description:

UkiCyperaceae (Sedge family)Indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands (all the main islands except Niihau and Kahoolawe)Kaala, OahuCloseupwww.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/9110972228/in/datetaken-...Captain Cook's artist John Webber sketched Hawaiian canoe paddlers wearing gourd masks. These masks were decorated with strips of kapa (tapa) that hung down and some are quite certain that the crest resembling feathers was uki (Cladium spp.). This may have been Cladium jamaicense or an another indigenous species now referred to as Machaerina angustifolia [syn. Cladium angustifolia].EtymologyThe generic name Machaerina is derived from the Latin machaera, a bent dagger or sword, and -ina, a feminine suffix, which in this case is diminutive, referring to the shape of the leaves of some species.The specific name angustifolia [angustifolius] means "narrow leaved."nativeplants.hawaii.edu