(HONOLULU) – Kiwikiu (Maui parrotbill) is the most endangered native Hawaiian bird. The small yellow honeycreepers live only in high elevation forest on windward Haleakalā, Maui. With an estimated population of less than 150 individuals, it is at high risk of going extinct within a few years.
Natural Area Reserves
(Koke’e) – A DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) Koke’e Fuel Reduction project is scheduled to begin work on Monday, April 19th. This Kaua’i DOFAW project is expected to take approximately three months depending on weather conditions.
(HONOLULU) - Five proposed changes, including four additions totaling roughly 8,100 acres and one withdrawal of about 2.7 acres, are being considered for the State Forest Reserve System (FRS), which is managed by the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW). The FRS represents the state’s largest public forest lands that provide a variety of benefits including aesthetic benefits; watershed restoration; native, threatened, and endangered species habitat protection and management; cultural resources; and recreational and hunting opportunities, among others. DOFAW will hold a virtual hearing at 6:00pm on April 28, 2021, to receive testimony on the proposed changes affecting the FRS.
(Kula) – On the southern slopes of Haleakalā, an area once used for livestock grazing has been gradually turning back into native forest. Though the boundaries of the Kahikinui Forest Reserve has changed considerably since its establishment in 1928, the overarching goal of forest restoration and management has endured. Now, the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), is seeking input on a draft management plan for the Kahikinui State Forest Reserve that will guide management priorities for this area over the next decade.
(HONOLULU) – An extension of the Ka‘ena Point Natural Area Reserve and the addition of Pia Valley in east O‘ahu, to the state’s Natural Area Reserves (NAR) System are on the table for input from people in March. The NAR System, a program of the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), seeks to keep native ecosystems as intact as possible to preserve Hawaii’s natural heritage.
(HONOLULU) – Nearing the top of the popular Hawai‘iloa Ridge Trail in East O‘ahu look to your right and take in Pia Valley. This 300-acre parcel of rainforest in the southern Ko‘olau mountains will now be protected forever, thanks to a generous donation.
(Hilo) – The palila, an endangered, native Hawaiian forest bird, is receiving assistance next month from the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW). DOFAW will conduct trapping of mouflon/feral sheep hybrids, and staff hunting and/or aerial shooting from helicopters for feral goats, feral sheep, mouflon and mouflon/feral sheep hybrids within palila critical habitat in the Mauna Kea Forest Reserve (Unit A), Mauna Kea Ice Age Natural Area Reserve (Unit K), Palila Mitigation Lands, and the Kaʻohe Game Management Area (Unit G) on the island of Hawaiʻi.
(LIHU‘E)— To reduce the risk of fires in the Pu‘u Ka Pele Forest Reserve on Kaua‘i, the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife ( DOFAW) is proposing forest thinning and fire break maintenance. Community members are invited to provide input on the proposed efforts via a virtual public meeting. This meeting will be at 9:00am on December 1, 2020. In addition to gathering people’s input, this meeting is intended to address questions or concerns regarding this project.
(Honolulu) – A roughly 1,260-acre parcel in Waiea, on Hawai‘i island is being proposed as an addition to the Hawai‘i Natural Area Reserve (NAR) System. The DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) will hold a virtual hearing at 6:00 p.m. on November 30, 2020 to receive community testimony about this proposal. The area is contiguous to other land parcels that are under management for forest, wildlife, and water conservation, and its addition would strengthen native ecosystem protection in the South Kona area.
(Kahului, Maui) – An anonymous donor is providing more than $1 million in funding to the Na Ala Hele Trails and Access Program on Maui. Most of the funding will support the planning, design, and construction of hiking trails in the recently acquired Kamehamenui Forest in upcountry Maui.