Hawaii Rainforest Stamp
As part of the 2010 Stamp Program the U.S. Postal Service will feature a new stamp with a Hawaiian rainforest. The Hawaiian rainforest is the twelfth Nature of America issuance in an educational series focusing on the beauty and complexity of major plant and animal communities in the United States. Previous issuances in the Nature of America series were Sonoran Desert, Pacific Coast Rain Forest, Great Plains Prairie, Longleaf Pine Forest, Arctic Tundra, Pacific Coral Reef, Northeast Deciduous Forest, Southern Florida Wetland, Alpine Tundra, Great Lakes Dunes, and Kelp Forest.
Artist John D. Dawson painted the scene and each of the previous ones in the Nature of America series. John is a gifted wildlife artist whose meticulous attention to detail and accuracy is inspired by countless hours of research, field observations, specimen studies, and consultations with scientists. The dramatic terrain of the West fueled many of his creative ideas, but in 1989 he traded the Rocky Mountains for the tropical rain forests of Hawaii, where he lives and works today. His clients include National Geographic, the National Park Service, and the U.S. Postal Service, for which he has created more than 30 stamp designs. The stamp goes on sale in August.
The following text appears on the back of the stamp pane:
Rainfall is abundant in a Hawaiian rain forest, a verdant world dotted with ‘ōhi‘a lehua blossoms and the flowers of the kanawao, ‘ōhā, and other shrubs. Typically, the leaves and branches of mature ‘ōhi‘a lehua trees make up the forest canopy. Saplings, shrubs, and tree ferns dominate the understory, while a great variety of smaller ferns, herbs and mosses carpet the forest floor.
The lush vegetation offers protection and sustenance for wildlife, including several bird species, numerous insects, and the islands’ only native terrestrial mammal — the ‘ōpe‘ape‘a, or Hawaiian hoary bat. Because of Hawaii’s remote location, its rain forest plants and animals were safe from competition and predation by introduced species until relatively recent times; today, they are among the most vulnerable biological communities on Earth.
The stamp pane features a rain forest on the island of Hawaii. In the painting, a tiny happyface spider clings to a leaf in the foreground as honeycreepers and other birds seek nectar, insects, and berries amid the dense foliage.
1. ‘Ōhi‘a lehua (Myrtle Family) Metrosideros polymorph
2. Hawaii ‘Amakihi (Finch Family) Hemignathus virens virens
3. Hawaii ‘Elepaio (Monarch Family) Chasiempis sandwichensis sandwichensis
4. ‘Ōma‘o (Thrush Family) Myadestes obscurus
5. Kanawao (Hydrangea Family) Broussaisia arguta
6. ‘Ōhelo kau lā‘au (Heath Family) Vaccinium calycinum
7. Koele Mountain Damselfly Megalagrion koelense
8. ‘Ākala (Hawaiian Raspberry) Rubus hawaiensis
9. ‘Ōhā (Bellflower Family) Clermontia parviflora
10. ‘Apapane (Finch Family) Himatione sanguinea
11. Hawaiian Mint Phyllostegia vestita
12. ‘Ākepa (Finch Family) Loxops coccineus coccineus
13. ‘Ōpe‘ape‘a (Hawaiian Hoary Bat) Lasiurus cinereus semotus
14. Pulelehua (Kamehameha Butterfly) Vanessa tameamea
15. Kōlea lau nui (Myrsine Family) Myrsine lessertiana
16. ‘Ilihia (African Violet Family) Cyrtandra platyphylla
17. Jewel Orchid Anoectochilus sandvicensis
18. Palapalai (Hay-scented Fern Family) Microlepia strigosa
19. Hāpu‘u pulu (Tree Fern Family) Cibotium glaucum
20. ‘I‘iwi (Finch Family) Vestiaria coccinea
21. Hāhā (Bellflower Family) Cyanea pilosa longipedunculata
22. ‘Ala‘ala wai nui (Black Pepper Family) Peperomia hypoleuca
23. Koa (Pea Family) Acacia koa
24. Happyface Spider Theridion grallator
