This project will support threat control and propagation for protecting and restoring populations of threatened and endangered plant species in hawaii

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, through the Endangered Species Recovery Implementation program (CFDA 15.657), awarded a $592,000 Project Grant to the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). This 5-year award will support threat control and propagation efforts to protect and restore populations of threatened and endangered plant species in Hawaii. Key activities include:

• Constructing fencing to protect wild, remnant populations of endangered plants as well as future reintroductions from damage by feral ungulates.
• Purchasing and deploying rodent traps and cameras to reduce herbivory and seed destruction by rats in these endangered plant populations.
• Making facility improvements at the Pahole Rare Plant Facility on Oahu, planning for a new facility on Molokai, and relocating the Hawaii Island facility to mitigate impacts from volcanic activity.
• Procuring equipment such as a plant growth chamber, weather station, and updated benches to enhance propagation and management of rare Hawaiian plant species.

The award will enable DLNR to implement critical recovery actions for federally listed endangered and threatened plant species across the main Hawaiian islands over the next 5 years.

Feral ungulates directly damage and destroy plants, as well as indirectly destroy and degrade the habitat listed plants depend on, making the location unsuitable for their persistence. These fence construction projects will protect wild, remnant populations of endangered plants, existing and future reintroductions, and or critical habitat. The proposed fences have been scoped and are ready to be built as soon as supplies are delivered with construction likely taking one year or less. Rodents, mainly rats, are a major threat to endangered plants in hawaii. They consume or destroy seedlings and seeds, damage plants and reduce reproduction. In order to reduce rodent herbivory or seed destruction, traps, trap supplies, and game cameras would be purchased to protect these endangered plant populations from rats. A year-long kupu INA intern will also be hired to help maintain these rodent control efforts. Games cameras will ensure efficacy. Trap replacement baits and CO2 cartridges are needed quarterly. Several to a couple dozen traps are needed to protect populations depending on their size. Traps and new RAT protection grids will be established on kauai, oahu, and hawaii island. Finally, improvements are needed for the pahole rare plant facility on oahu, and planning is needing to determine where a new facility can be located on molokai, as well as where the current hawaii island facility can be moved. The facility on maui propagates plants for maui, as well as moloka i and partially for LNA i, and plants are flown via helicopter over to moloka i for reintroductions. A new facility on moloka i will greatly increase reintroduction efforts for that island. On hawai i island, the facility is close to the active klauea volcano, and the VOG that regularly infiltrates the facility has damaged plants and reduced propagation success. Partners would like to determine where the facility could be relocated. On o AHU, the benches where the plants grow were initially built with wooden legs that have degraded over time and need to be replaced with benches made of plastic and or metal. A new water catchment system is needed to ensure water is not depleted from the tanks as warmer days increase the amount of water needed and that the water is filtered to balance added nutrients. Due to the remote location of the facility, a weather station will also help managers prepare for storm events and indicate when immediate response is necessary to secure plants during inclement weather, as well as provide data on the actual temperatures and humidity to help guide propagation efforts and challenges. Lastly, a plant growth chamber will be purchased to assist with fern propagation efforts that require a controlled environment, as well as for seedling propagation for species that occur at the highest summits on o AHU, where conditions at the mid-elevation facilities are substantially different.