© Environment News Service (ENS) 2000
December 28, 2000
By Cat Lazaroff

OAHU, Hawaii, December 28, 2000 (ENS) - Hawaii got an early Christmas present this year. The Oahu Forest National Wildlife Refuge, the 17th National Wildlife Refuge to be established in the Pacific, was established last week to protect some of the last remaining native forest in the Koolau Mountains.

The new 4,525 acre refuge was purchased by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) from Castle & Cooke, with the deed transferred last Thursday. Planning for the proposed refuge spanned nearly a decade, and involved coordination among a number of government agencies, private conservation organizations and the general public.

"Castle & Cooke has been a major landowner in Hawaii for more than 150 years. Through the generations, we have tried to be good stewards of the land," said Harry Saunders, executive vice president of Castle & Cooke Homes Hawaii. "The transfer of this significant piece of native forest to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will ensure that these lands will be protected for the benefit of the public for generations to come."

The refuge is located in the northern Koolau Mountains and provides habitat for the endangered O`ahu `elepaio, the pueo or Hawaiian owl, native honeycreepers (O'ahu 'amakihi and 'apapane), and other native Hawaiian forest birds.

Many native plant species, including 17 endangered species, live in the new refuge, along with four species of endangered Oahu tree snails and native stream fishes.

At least nine native natural communities have been identified in the project area, including a rare lo`ulu or fan palm community. The new refuge is the first to be established in the mountains of Oahu.

The Nature Conservancy helped conduct the biological surveys of the property, obtain funding, and negotiate the purchase.

"We appreciate Castle & Cooke's commitment to protect this special natural area and are pleased to have facilitated this transaction," said Rex Johnson, executive director of the Hawaii chapter of the Nature Conservancy.

"We have been working with The Nature Conservancy and Castle & Cooke, Inc. for many years on this project," said Jerry Leinecke, USFWS project leader for the Hawaiian and Pacific Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex. "Without their assistance, we would never have been able to create this new Refuge, and we offer our sincere thanks to everyone who worked so hard to protect this area within the National Wildlife Refuge System."

The island of O'ahu, also known as the "Gathering Place," gathers both people and birds to its shores. As the state capital of Hawaii, it is the most populated island and the most developed, which makes habitat sparse and precious.

Two other national wildlife refuges exist on the island, both designed to preserve wetland habitat for birds. The refuges lie at opposite ends of the 600 square mile island.

James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge is at the northern tip of the island. Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge is at the southern end, near the U.S. Naval Reservation in historic Pearl Harbor.

The new Oahu Forest National Wildlife Refuge is located just south of the Schofield Barracks Military Reserve, on the eastern side of the island - about halfway between the existing refuges.

All three Oahu refuges are open to the public by permit only. Scheduled tours in the James Campbell and Pearl Harbor refuges are available during nonnesting seasons, to protect native birds.

Barbara Maxfield, spokesperson for the USFWS, said no public access to the newest refuge will be allowed until a complete inventory is taken of the plant and animal species in the forest tract.

At least nine native natural communities have been identified in the project area including lowland mesic koa and 'ohi'a forest types, 'ohi'a rainforest communities, a rare fanpalm natural community, high elevation cloud forest and freshwater streams.

"We look forward to working with the U.S. Army and the State of Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources to protect a larger area of the northern Koolaus through the Koolau Forest Watershed Partnership," said Leinecke of the USFWS. "This biologically rich area includes some of the last remnants of Oahu's native plants and animals, and we are delighted to have the opportunity to help protect them for future generations." Error: Unable to read footer file.