Hawaii Flora & Fauna

King Kamehameha I ~ A confident leader connected to Halawa ~ Part Two

Unification of the Islands (with a note about Hawai‘i’s ranching legacy) Kamehameha had inherited the longstanding feud with Maui that had already existed at the time of his birth. After 1791, Maui’s ruling chief, Kahekili, fiercely contested Kamehameha’s rulership. One day, when... read more »

King Kamehameha I ~ A confident leader connected to Halawa ~ Part One

From lonesome keiki to island king Who hasn’t heard the name? The story of King Kamehameha infuses the legends of Hawaii. Each year, on June 11, Hawaii celebrates Kamehameha’s birthday with colorful parades and flower lei. But while we all agree that this fierce leader unified the islands... read more »

Red-billed leiothrix ~ Leiothrix lutea

With its complex, melodious warble and loud chatter call, mostly olive-green feathered, and just six inches in size, red-billed leiothrix is a pretty and attractive bird. You can’t miss its bright-yellow throat, its bright-red bill, the colored edges of its wings, maybe even the yellowish ring... read more »

Common barn owl ~ Tyto alba

Found on all continents except Antarctica, and regularly seen on all Hawaiian islands, the common barn owl is often confused with Hawaii’s smaller-sized native short-eared owl, pueo. But barn owls are light in color. They are most active during dusk and nightfall. Their white face is more... read more »

Pueo ~ Hawaiian short-eared owl ~ Asio flammeus sandwichensis

Thought to have settled in shortly after the first Polynesians came to Hawai‘i, which may have been around 300 A.D., brown-feathered pueo has flown its own course ever since. It is considered endemic, found only in the islands, as a subspecies to the ubiquitous short-eared owl. Polynesians... read more »

Cattle Egret ~ Bubulcus ibis

A cosmopolitan amid Hawaii’s birds, standing tall and graceful, the white-plumaged cattle egret has been recorded in Iceland, Belgium, and Egypt. Native to Africa and Asia, it’s established on all the continents except for Antarctica. And all this travel has occurred by the power of its own... read more »

Chinese Hwamei ~ Leucodioptron canorum* ~ Melodious laughing-thrush

Listen for the clear and varied song of this passerine bird, because you may not easily see it. Shy, it isn’t easily approached. Just 8 to 9.5 inches in size, with fairly plain rusty-brown plumage marked by darker streaks, it doesn’t stand out until you hear its beautiful, repetitive call.... read more »

Japanese White-Eye ~ Zosterops japonicus ~ Mejiro

Wisps of smoke-gray, pale-brown, and soft yellow intersect the dusky-green plumage of the Japanese white-eye. The clear, light voice of this small perching bird seldom sings alone. Mejiro (the Japanese word means “white-eye” and refers to the white ring around the eyes) is a sociable creature,... read more »

Kalij Pheasant ~ Lophura leucomelanos

A flash of glossy indigo. Vermillion-rimmed eyes. A streak of drab, rustling in the brush grass, a short, clumsy flight to a nearby shrub. You may just have seen or heard a black-plumaged male or brown-feathered female kalij. They’re chubby birds, about two to three feet in size. How did these... read more »

Hawaiian Hawk ~ ‘Io ~ Buteo solitarius

Among the most endangered birds in the world are the native birds of Hawaii. Amid them soars the graceful io, the Hawaiian hawk, once a powerful symbol of Hawaiian royalty. Although the islands were once home to eagles, harriers, and several other hawks, only io managed to survive among birds of... read more »

Ginger

With exquisite fragrance in the blossoms, glorious spice in the roots, and multiple powers as medicine, gingers have been favorite plants for millennia, worldwide. Comprising perennial herbs packed with aromatic oils, the overall ginger family (Zingiberaceae) is large and complex. Counting an... read more »

Guava: Common guava and strawberry guava

Native to the tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, the genus Psidium or guava belongs to the vast eucalyptus family, and comprises at least 100 species. Bishop Museum’s A Tropical Garden Flora (2005) lists six species for Hawai‘i in its index. That’s plenty, though. Pretty... read more »

Coffee

Related to gardenia, coffee (coffee arabica) shows it intrinsic beauty especially when in bloom with sweet and fragrant white flowers, or when its branches bow under the weight of vermilion cherry clusters. Coffee plants first came to the islands in 1813, when the Spaniard Don Francisco de Paula... read more »

Ohia lehua

Once the predominant tree in the natural forests of Halawa, at home in the islands long before Hawaiian settlers arrived, strong ohia with its graceful blossoms named lehua has been a source of inspiration for ancient legends and poetry. The Hawaiians noted that this botanical species had a... read more »

Kukui ~ candlenut tree

Shimmery leaves, silvery-pale green foliage dancing in the wind. Or else you catch a glimpse as you zip through the Halawa forest canopy, a peaceful play of light like a song. These are the ways that Hawaii’s beloved kukui tree reveals itself. A member of the spurge family, kukui became the... read more »

Albizia moluccana

Native to the Moluccas, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands, this whitish-barked tree with fern-like foliage was introduced to Hawaii by botanist J. F. Rock in 1917. Fast growing, reaching heights of over 100 feet and aesthetically distinctive, albizia seemed like an ideal species for... read more »

Casuarina

Better known as ironwood and introduced to Hawaii as early as 1872, this evergreen tree looks like a giant, sweeping brown pine tree. Its needle-like branchlets wrap around sheath-like leaves that themselves are utterly inconspicuous. Ironwood fixes free nitrogen from the air into its roots, and... read more »

Flora and fauna of North Kohala

A forested, stream-rich land on the northern tip of the Big Island of Hawaii shelters in its sun-dappled canopy an unexpected zip line adventure. In this area known since ancient times as Halawa, elevated platforms are built directly into majestic trees to form a jungle-like course. For a few... read more »

Eucalyptus Robusta

Growing to heights in excess of 100 feet, natural to Australia, and thriving in wet sites, this non-native tree is also known as swamp mahogany. Robusta was planted in Halawa during reforestation efforts in the 1930s. Hawaii’s sugar plantations knew that sugar’s survival depended on the... read more »