Abutilon pitcairnense leaves are by . The plant is native to unstable slopes, flowering from July to August. The plant is native to tiny Pitcairn Island (), a remote island between New Zealand and South America which is mostly known for being settled by the mutineers from the HMS "Bounty". After being considered extinct for twenty years, a single plant was found growing in native forest of "Homalium taypau" and "Metrosideros collina" in 2003. Vegetative propagation, along with seed from the plant, were used to establish a small population on the island's nursery, with some propagation material also being sent to Trinity
Mutiny on the Bounty first port of call. Christian therefore headed "Bounty" towards the small island of Tubuai, some south of Tahiti. Tubuai had been discovered and roughly charted by Cook; except for a single small channel, it was entirely surrounded by a coral reef and could, Christian surmised, be easily defended against any attack from the sea. "Bounty" arrived at Tubuai on 28 May 1789. The reception from the native population was hostile; when a flotilla of war canoes headed for the ship, Christian used a four-pounder gun to repel the attackers. At least a dozen warriors were killed, and the rest scattered.