Nearly half of the hawaiian flora is considered rare and 424 plants are listed threatened or endangered by the U.S. Fish and wildlife service

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded a $1,289,637 Project Grant to the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) under the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CFDA 15.615) program. The purpose of this 4-year grant is to support DLNR's statewide rare plant conservation efforts in Hawaii. Key activities include surveying and monitoring critically rare plant populations, collecting propagules for ex-situ storage and reintroduction, operating seed banks and nurseries, out-planting to establish new populations, and implementing in-situ habitat restoration and threat mitigation measures. These actions are critical to recovering Hawaii's endangered flora, which faces severe threats from invasive species, wildfires, and land conversion that have disrupted natural regeneration. By directly intervening to propagate, reintroduce, and manage habitat for these rare plants, DLNR aims to establish stable, naturally reproducing populations with minimal ongoing management.

These species and their habitats are in decline due to the impacts from invasivenon-native species, wildfires, and land conversion. As a result, regeneration of many plant species in situ hasbeen interrupted causing a rapid decline in the numbers of populations and individuals. The dlnr-dofaw statewide rare plant program supports the goal of in situ plant recovery, when these species can maintain stable orincreasing naturally reproducing populations in secure, adequately sized, suitable habitat with only a low levelof management. However, habitat protection alone will not provide for full recovery of hawaiis rare plants.direct intervention by the dlnr-dofaw through threat control, EX situ propagation, and habitat restorationefforts are major and necessary aspects of an integrated conservation strategy. The actions to be supported bythis project include surveying for and monitoring critically rare plant populations, collecting propagules forstorage and reintroduction projects, storing and propagating seeds in seed banks and nurseries, out planting tocreate new populations, and in situ management actions to address threats.