Hawaii Volcanoes National Park plant reproductive and rat abundance data, 2016-2017

This data included data and metadata on 1) the number of open fruit of Hibiscidelphus giffardianus, 2) Mark recapture data for rats, 3) location data for rat traps within plots and 4) seedling count data for Hibiscidelphus giffardianus. All sites were within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. This study aims to evaluate the effect of rat population control on the ability of Hibiscadelphus giffardianus to successfully establish seedlings. We compared H. giffardianus fruiting and recruitment in a stand treated for rats and a neighboring control stand. The study was conducted in two neighboring kīpuka, Kīpuka Puaulu and Kīpuka Kī, which are patches of well-developed forest surrounded by more recent lava flows. These kīpuka lie 2.5 km northwest of Kīlauea Caldera in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the island of Hawaii. The 700 × 700 m rat-removal treatment area falls within Kīpuka Kī, and Kīpuka Puaulu served as a control. We monitored 181 mature, fruit-bearing individuals of this species, of which there exist 223 total.