All those Cibotiums sends chills down my back! What a cool place.

Pat, I've promised to give some pointers to Hawaii-travelling friends who want specifically to see Cibotium menziesii (the one with dark bristly stipe hairs) on the big island. Any suggestions? Particularly, if you know whether this species is present in the Thurston Lava Tube area...

Excellent question Stephen. Well, the fact is, I didn't properly prepare for my recent trip to ensure I was able to tell the difference between related Cibotium species. I was generally familiar with how to tell them apart when compared side by side. However, in the field I noticed farely wide variation in coloration and amount of stipe hairs. I did not see any that were clearly black. Only colorations from light tan to medium brown. Unfortunately during this trip I missed the oportunity to visit the Tropical Botanical Garden just north of Hilo. I have visited all the botanical gardens on Oahu, and the two major gardens on Kauai. I was dissapointed to only find a few rather insignificant specimens of Hawaiian tree ferns in these gardens. One exception is the garden near Schofield Barracks on Oahu that exhibited a nice stand of Cibotium. Likely C. chamissoi. I think it would be best to have Palmer's book in hand and a good magnifying glass to effectively distiguish between species. Fine stands of tree ferns are found growing between Puna district near Hilo and the Volcanos National Park. And throughout the park, including at the Thurston Lava Tube. While traveling with my girlfriend and her sister I was kinda uncomfortable spending a lot of time examining fern fronds for auricle shape and arachnoid hairs. :)

From what you're saying, Pat, it sounds like you may only have come across Cibotium glaucum, and maybe C.chamissoi as well. I suppose it's just possible that the mid-brown specimens might just have included an anaemic-looking menziesii, but probably not. Menziesii is not just altogether darker than the other two Cibotium species (ignoring the dwarf C.nealiae only found on Kauai) it's also more 'bristly', lacks the cobwebby mid-stipe fluff, and is less powdery white on the underside than glaucum...but still paler than the all-green chamissoi. And only glaucum has the 'thumb'-shaped auricle on the first pair of pinnules.

The quickest menziesii ready-reckoner is the general dark bristly demeanour around the crown and stipe.

What is the story on those tree ferns? are they the result of roadside clearing and recolonise the open ground or is that road on a steep cliff and we are looking at the tops of everything-ferns and trees?

Away from the road if guess "A", how thick are they among the trees?

My guess is that those are C.glaucum. Doesn't chamissoi have a more Cyathea look?..more upright and less droopy fronds that is?

There shouldn't be any significant difference in the overall profile of glaucum, chamissoi and menziesii. Not if they are grown in identical habitats and with the same sunlight aspect, anyway. Discriminating between them requires an examination of the stipe hairs, plus checking the pinnae for shade, shape and the presence (or not) of arachnoid hairs.

Those tree ferns along the road were just easier to photograph than in the forsest cover.

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This is along the path to Kiluea Iki crater.

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This is looking into the general forest on the east side of Volcanos National Park.

The first of those two photos above is definitely all Cibotium glaucum - the powdery white blush on the frond underside is clearly visible. Nothing like that on chamissoi. And menziesii doesn't have that cobwebby covering on the stipe (which are also too pale in this shot). Glaucum it is...

WHOO.Where to start?.. There's my answer to those who say tree ferns dont grow that close together in the wild when they see my small back yard.... The almost vertical stipes have to be the most distinguishing feature of the those magnificent ferns.
And thanks for the L. cernua photo Pat.If you only knew how hard i tried to get one and when i did..it came from(of all places)a florists shop as a huge 2' cutting(s). Now matter what I did they could not overcome the wholeseller or collector dipping them in preservative. Still,it took months before they gave up the ghost. Imagine that,a rare,endangered,very expensive-if alive- species only legally sold as florists decorations. I was trying to add it to the local University's collection by the way.Not for myself.

Wow - those are amazing.

Makes me wish tree ferns were hardy here in Illinois

I'm still learning how to use my new digital camera after 30+ years with a standard film SLR. Haven't figured out how to take manual control of the focus yet, so I couldn't get a good shot of the Lycopodium unless I stepped on it; pinning it to the ground with contrasting background. I like the ground growing L. cernua. My specimen of L. squarosa has been struggling along for a few years. Sometimes I wonder if some species are more trouble to grow than they are worth. I guess like other growers some of my plants take a lot of effort just to keep them alive, others explode producing more than I can give away. Finally putting most of my collection in order for winter yesterday was exhausting. The funniest was, with the help of my son, dragging an 18 foot tall 'Caryota no' through the front door of my house and standing it up in the foyer. My ex-wife would have come un-glued.