Hawaii Forest & Trail shares the marvels of Hawai’i’s unique and diversified creatures.
Every year, for a week in late January or early February a group of people from a variety of backgrounds from the USGS, University of Hawaii, Mauna Kea Restoration Project, Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project, Mauna Kea Watershed, Hakalau, Three…
Most people are not fond of snails. Snails are known as serious garden and agricultural pests. Some like to eat them, but most of us think of them as slimy critters. The native Hawaiian snails however deserve a second look.…
Hawaiian Name: 'Io Scientific Name: Buteo solitarius Status: Endangered Native Species A symbol of Hawaiian royalty and favored by ali'i (chiefs). Currently, habitat destruction, nest disturbance and hunting threaten survival of this species. Distribution: Hawai'i Island, from sea level to…
Scientific Name: Leiothrix lutea Endemic to: Asia The Red Billed Leiothrix, also known as the Japanese Hill Robin, was introduced to Hawaii in the early 1900's from the US mainland and Asia as a cage bird. Found mainly in wet…
Scientific Name: Nysius wekiuicola Distribution: Summit areas of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa (above 13,000ft) on Hawaii Island. Diet: Straw like mouth parts are used by most seed bugs to pierce and suck out the insides of seeds. But on…
Scientific Name: Capra hircus History: Introduced to Hawaiian Islands in 1778 by Captain James Cook. Distribution: Sea level to higher elevations on all main islands. Prefer rocky slopes and open lava fields in drier areas. Ecological Impact: Feral Goats forage…
Scientific Name: Loxoides bailleui Distribution: Hawai'i Island only, in mamane-naio dry forests of Mauna Kea from 6,000 to 9,000 elevation. Today, the Palila occupies only 5% of its historic range on Hawaii Island. Diet: Feeds mostly on immature mamane seeds.…
Hawaiian Name: Opeapea Scientific Name: Lasiurus cinereus semotus The Hawaiian Bat is the only endemic land mammal in Hawaii that is extant (surviving). The Hawaiian Bat has been on the federal list of endangered species since the 1970s. Population size…
Scientific Name: Eupithecia spp. Family Geometridae (Inchworms), Eupithecia spp. Found in wet forests and shrublands, 18 known species of Eupithecia in Hawaii are unique from all other members of the genus: unlike their herbivorous brethren, these Hawaii Eupithecia are carnivorous…
Hawaiian Name: Ilio holo ikauaua Scientific Name: Monachus schauinslandi Most Hawaiian Monk Seals live in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, but a small number can be found on the main islands. Hawaiian Monk Seals live up to 30 years and grow…
Scientific Name: Vanessa tameamea Distribution: Endemic to Hawaiian islands, found mainly in upland woodlands. The Kamehameha Butterfly was the first of the Lepidoptera to be described in the Hawaiian Islands and named in the early 1800s for Kamehameha I. Diet:…
Scientific Name: Vestiaria coccinea Distribution/Habitat: Once widely distributed on all islands, the 'i'iwii are highly susceptible to avian pox and malaria and are now mostly found in 'ohi'a and koa forests above the "mosquito zone", on Hawai'i, Maui and Kaua'i.…
Hawaiian Name: Pua'a Scientific Name:Sus scrofa History: A descendant of the small Asiatic domestic pigs introduced by Polynesians in the early colonization period (400AD) and the larger European domestic pigs first introduced by Captain James Cook in 1778. Distribution/Habitat/Diet: Found…
Scientific Name: Herpestes 'auropunctatus History: Introduced in 1883 from Jamaica (originally from India), to control rat populations in the sugar cane fields. However, because the mongoose is diurnal and the rat primarily nocturnal, they were not an effective bio-control. Distribution…
Hawaiian Name:Nananana Makaki'i Scientific Name: Theridion grallator This spider is normally shy and retiring. It lives on the undersides of leaves in rainforests, mainly on the Big Island. It hunts primarily at night and feeds on small insects that it…
