Special Features and Information
General
ʻAkoko belong to the Spurge or Euphorbia family (Euphorbiaceae). The genus has recently been chnged from Chamaesyce to Euphorbia.
Euphorbiaceae is a large family with about 7,500 species within 300 genera, found on all the continents except Antarctica, with the greatest diversity in the tropics. Some well-known non-native relatives of ʻakoko are the Castor oil plant (Ricinus communis), kukui (Aleurites moluccana), poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima), cassava (Manihot esculenta), and the Pará rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) from which we get latex [WikipediA;Euphorbiaceae].
There are currently (2026) 17 native species of Euphorbia in Hawai‘i — all endemic to the Islands. Several species are either vulnerable, rare, or endangered, and two varieties are considered to be extinct [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands]. They range in stature from very prostrate shrubs like Euphorbia degeneri to tall trees like Euphorbia haeleeleana and Euphorbia olowaluana [Wagner et al. 1990].
In addition to the many endemic Euphorbia species, the only other member of Euphorbiaceae native to Hawai‘i is the endemic poʻolā (Claoxylon sandwicense) [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands].
The two currently recognized Chamesyce skottsbergii varieties are separated by the following characteristics:
Variety skottsbergii is an overall smaller plant with toothed (serrate) or sometimes smooth edged leaves usually less than 3/4 of an inch (2 cm.).
Variety vaccinioides is a more robust plant with smooth edged (entire) leaves usually more than 3/4 of an inch (2 cm.). [2]
Hawaiian Name
ʻAkoko comes from the Hawaiian word for blood, koko. This is likely a reference to the red, or blood-colored, seed capsules that look like drops of blood on many Hawaiian Euphorbia species [Krauss 1993, Neal 1965]. Alternatively, some believe the name comes from the observation that ‘akoko leaves, when damaged, often turn red, giving the appearance that the plant bleeds when it is injured.
Etymology
Euphorbia is named after Euphorbos, a Greek physician of King Juba II of Numidia and Mauretania (52–50 BC – 23 AD), who married the daughter of Anthony and Cleopatra [WikipediA; Euphorbia].
The former genus name, Chamaesyce, is derived from the ancient Greek words, χαμαί (khamaí), meaning “near the ground,” and συκῆ (sukê), meaning "fig-tree," perhaps referring to the low habit of most species and the fig-like appearance of the fruit capsules [Wiktionary;Chamaesyce].
The specific epithet skottsbergii, is named for Prof. Carl Johan Fredrik Skottsberg (1880-1963), a Swedish explorer and plant collector in the Hawaiian Islands and elsewhere.