Department of Land and Natural Resources

(KANEOHE) – The carcass of a three and a half ton Humpback whale that stranded on a reef just off of Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i (MCBH), was successfully removed today. It’s believe the carcass may be the same one spotted off Haleiwa earlier in the week.  In Kaneohe Bay the carcass split into two major pieces, with the whale’s skull sticking out of the water a short distance from the main carcass.

(HONOLULU) – The carcass of a badly decomposed Humpback whale washed onto a near-shore reef at Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i (MCBH) late yesterday. There’s a good possibility this is the same carcass that was first seen off the beach at Haleiwa earlier this week – it was towed eight miles offshore by a private dive company but ocean currents may have brought it back to shore at Kaneohe.

(HONOLULU) – The Hawai‘i Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation Commission (Climate Commission) has accepted its first major report since its formation last fall. The Sea Level Rise Vulnerability & Adaptation Report is a comprehensive 304-page-long description of where Hawai‘i is today and where we will be in the future as sea level rise (SLR) increases with global warming.

(HONOLULU) – Anyone who knows anything about Laysan Albatross knows they are among the most dedicated parents in the animal kingdom. During nesting season, as one parent sits atop an egg, the other one searches for food for their soon-to-hatch chick.  This is no easy task. Albatross prefer cold-water fish and amazingly as one parent stays home, the other flies from Hawai‘i to Alaska and back over the course of about ten days, returning with bellies full of food.

(Haleiwa, O‘ahu) -  The badly decomposed carcass of a Humpback whale that nearly washed on shore at Haleiwa on Christmas Day, is in the process of being towed out to deep ocean waters this afternoon. A private dive company, One Ocean Diving, first towed the carcass away from Haleiwa on Sunday and today volunteered to go ahead and tow it further offshore.  Yesterday the remains were towed three miles offshore by one of the company’s boats and this afternoon, based on drift pattern modeling provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, it was towed an additional ten miles offshore, due north of Haleiwa.

(Lihue, Kaua‘i) – People monitoring the ecosystem recovery on tiny Lehua Island report that - four months after the conclusion of a rat eradication project - there are still no signs of the invasive Pacific Rats.  For decades they’ve attacked native seabirds on Lehua, eating their eggs and chicks. Though Lehua Island Restoration Project partners won’t declare the eradication effort a complete success until next September, monitoring teams are tremendously encouraged by what they’re seeing.

HONOLULU -- A project to revitalize one of only six remaining fishponds on O‘ahu took a significant step forward in the fall with the demolition and removal of two abandoned/condemned residential structures that shared the beach front property along busy Kalaniana‘ole Highway in Niu Valley in east Honolulu. Work at the site of the historic Kalauha‘iha‘i Hawaiian fishpond (also known as Lucas pond) was completed two months earlier than planned. Work to clear the property and restore a more natural state was completed in September.

HONOLULU -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) is seeking entries in an art contest to depict a Game Mammal and Game Bird for its 2018-2019 Hawai‘i Wildlife Conservation and Game Bird Stamp.  The conservation stamp is required on the Hawai‘i state hunting license, and the game bird stamp is required for those intending to hunt game birds.  Both stamps (differing slightly in text) will be available to wildlife stamp collectors. 

(HONOLULU) – A report released today by the United States Dept. of Agriculture’s National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) in Fort Collins, CO shows no detectable levels of the rodenticide Diphacinone in the livers of five pilot whales that died on Kaua‘i on Oct. 13, 2017 (two washed onto Kalapaki Beach and three were found floating in Nawailili Harbor).

(HONOLULU) - Make a New Year’s resolution to your health and happiness by kicking off 2018 with an invigorating First Day Hike at Kaiwi State Scenic Shoreline. On January 1, all 50 states will participate in the seventh annual national event that encourages everyone to celebrate the New Year with a guided outdoor exploration. Of special note this year, the Ontario Provincial Parks have joined the movement in providing First Day Hikes uniting with America’s State Parks, and a number of staff from the National Park Service and local parks departments are also participating.