We applied established methods for wetland identification in lowland a
nd montane wet forests (rain forests) on the island of Hawaii to deter
mine whether rain forests exhibited wetland indicators specified in de
lineation manuals and to examine relationships among indicators of hyd
rophytic vegetation, hydric soils, and wetland hydrology. Morphologica
l characteristics and ferrous iron tests indicated pockets of hydric o
rganic soils within areas mapped as Folists. Hydrophytic vegetation de
cisions based on prevalence values agreed with hydric soil determinati
ons more often than did decisions based on dominant plant species. Non
e of the rain forest types we studied exhibited wetland indicators thr
oughout, but some sites contained scattered small wetlands occupying m
icrotopographic lows created by cracks, folds, and undulating flow pat
terns in the lava bedrock. Further work is needed to identify reliable
wetland indicators that can be used during drier portions of the year
and to distinguish hydric from nonhydric organic rain forest soils.