Kauai delisseaCampanulaceaeEndemic to the Hawaiian Islands (Kauai only)IUCN: Critically EndangeredOahu (Cultivated) A very rare and endangered lobeliad planted in the ground with kupukupu or niaaniau (Nephrolepis exaltata), an indigenous fern and Oahu sedge (Carex wahuensis subsp. wahuensis), endemic.Fruits of delissea are edible, but mealy.
www.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/5454954089/in/photolist-...EtymologyThe generic name Delissea is named for Jacques Delisse (1773-1856), a French physican and botanist from Mauritius, who served as naturalist on the D'Entrecasteaux expedition to the South Pacific in 1800-1804.The specific name is from the Greek rhytidos, wrinkled, and sperma, seed, in reference to the wrinkled seeds of this species. However, this wrinkled appearance, looking much like a brain, is also seen in at least two other Delissea spp.
nativeplants.hawaii.edu/plant/view/Delissea_rhytidosperma