Sphagnum bogs are rare in the Hawaiian Islands, occurring naturally only at a few
sites in the wettest areas on Maui and Hawai`i.  Only three species of Sphagnum have
been reported (Karlin and Andrus, Bryologist 98: 235-238, 1995).  In the Northern
Hemisphere, G. paludosa  is commonly collected in sphagnum bogs dominated by S.
palustre  L.  Not surprisingly, we have found G. paludosa  in several disjunct
S. palustre  bogs on the island of Hawai`i.