(Līhuʻe) – Adventurers seeking to access remote areas in central Kauaʻi can now do so with caution, thanks to the re-opening of the Wailua Forest Management Road. The road, better known as “Loop Road” has been closed following flood damage in 2018. Repairs to the road have been managed by the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) with contractor Waʻalani Enterprise.
Forestry & Wildlife
(Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a Forest Reserve, Hawai‘i Island) – The first scenes for hikers intending to ascend the Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a cinder cone, do not exactly depict a pristine forest reserve. Remnants of former industrial uses of the property, scattered across the landscape near the beginning of the 3.2-mile-long trail, were the focus of a 2009 Environmental Site Assessment, conducted by the USDA Forest Service Enterprise Program.
(Dillingham Military Reservation, O‘ahu) – A small platoon of biologists and technicians walk across muddy ground, amidst, shoulder-high grass to reach the point of deployment. They will be releasing an air force of orange-black Hawaiian damselflies in the bed of a small, spring-fed stream, not far from Dillingham field. On O‘ahu currently there is only one wild population of the 2-inch-long, native damselfly, tucked in among the buildings of the Tripler Army Medical Center’s vast campus. Not exactly the ideal place to improve the lot of this species.
DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES News Release DAVID Y. IGE GOVERNOR SUZANNE D. CASE CHAIRPERSON For Immediate News Release: April 28, 2021 TWO OʻAHU COMMUNITY COLLEGES RECEIVE NATIONAL RECOGNITION ...
Read More 04/28/21-TWO OʻAHU COMMUNITY COLLEGES RECEIVE NATIONAL RECOGNITION AS TREE CAMPUS SCHOOLS
(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.
(Honolulu) – Winners of the 2021-2022 Hawai‘i Wildlife Conservation and Game Bird Stamp Art Contest were announced this week by the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW). DOFAW would like to thank all the wildlife artists that submitted entries for this year’s contest. A committee reviewed all submissions and two winners were chosen:
(LĪHUʻE) – Just in time for Earth Day 2021, Lehua Island, the tiny, but mighty island off Kaua‘i’s west shore has been declared free of damaging, introduced (invasive) rats. After many dec-ades, the island is free of invasive vertebrates, enabling Hawaii’s seabirds to safely nest on the steep rocky shores, and native plants to flourish once again.
(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.