Rubus macraei

Rubus macraei, commonly known as Ākalakala, is a species of Rubus that is endemic to Hawaii. Although superficially similar to the other Hawaiian species, Rubus hawaiensis, sequence differences of the chloroplast gene ndhF indicate that they are derived from separate colonization events of Hawaii. These data indicate that R. macraei is more distantly related to both Asian and North American species of subgenus Idaeobatus than R. hawaiensis. R. macraei usually has a creeping rather than erect or sprawling habit. It inhabits wet forests, bogs, and subalpine shrublands at elevations of 1610 - 2080 m on the Big Island and East Maui.