Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge

Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge
Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge
	IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
	Map of Hawaii
Location	Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi, United States
Nearest city	Princeville, Hawaii
Coordinates	22°12′10″N159°28′23″W / 22.20277°N 159.47305°W [1] Coordinates: 22°12′10″N159°28′23″W / 22.20277°N 159.47305°W [2]
Area	917 acres (3.71 km2)
Established	1972
Governing body	U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Website	Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge

Last updated April 06, 2019

The Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge on the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaiʻi. It is located within the Hanalei River Valley along the island's northern shore. The Refuge was established on 30 November 1972 for the conservation of endangered plants and animals,^[3] especially the Hawaiian stilt, Hawaiian coot, Hawaiian gallinule and Hawaiian duck.

National Wildlife RefugeSystem is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife, and plants. Since President Theodore Roosevelt designated Florida's Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge as the first wildlife refuge in 1903, the system has grown to over 562 national wildlife refuges and 38 wetland management districts encompassing more than 150,000,000 acres (607,028 km²).

Kauaʻi, anglicized as Kauai, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km²), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle", Kauaʻi lies 105 miles (169 km) across the Kauaʻi Channel, northwest of Oʻahu. This island is the site of Waimea Canyon State Park.

Hawaii is the 50th and most recent state to have joined the United States, having received statehood on August 21, 1959. Hawaii is the only U.S. state located in Oceania, the only U.S. state located outside North America, and the only one composed entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean.

Geography

The Refuge is a relatively flat river valley ranging from 20 to 40 ft (6.1 to 12.2 m) above sea level and is surrounded by steep wooded hillsides up to 1,000 ft (300 m) high. The average annual temperature is approximately 73 °F (23 °C), and annual rainfall usually exceeds 75 in (190 cm). At the southeastern end of the Refuge, water from the Hanalei River is diverted into an east and west supply ditch. It then flows northwest and irrigates approximately 186 acres (75 ha) of taro and 84 acres (34 ha) of wildlife impoundments before returning to the river. The Refuge encompasses a total area of approximately 917 acres (371 ha).

The Hanalei River on the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii flows north from the eastern slopes of Mount Waiʻaleʻale for 15.7 miles (25.3 km) until it reaches the Pacific Ocean at Hanalei Bay as an estuary. With a long-term mean discharge of 216 cubic feet per second, in terms of water flow it is the second-largest river in the state; although its watershed of 19.1 square miles (49 km²) is only sixth-largest on Kauaʻi, it encompasses areas of the highest recorded rainfall on the planet and plunges precipitously from its headwaters at 3,500 feet (1,100 m) above sea level.

A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aquaculture, and navigability. Hydropower is often used in conjunction with dams to generate electricity. A dam can also be used to collect water or for storage of water which can be evenly distributed between locations. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. The earliest known dam is the Jawa Dam in Jordan, dating to 3,000 BC.

Wildlife

The Refuge hosts four endangered waterbirds, the āeʻo (Hawaiian stilt, Himantopus mexicanus knudseni ), ʻalae kea (Hawaiian coot, Fulica alai), ʻalae ʻula (Hawaiian moorhean, Gallinula chloropus sandvicensis ), koloa maoli (Hawaiian duck, Anas wyvilliana), and nēnē (Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis), as well as 18 other introduced bird species.^[4]

The black-winged stilt is a widely distributed very long-legged wader in the avocet and stilt family (Recurvirostridae). The scientific name H. himantopus was formerly applied to a single, almost cosmopolitan species. It is now normally applied to the form that is widespread in Eurasia and Africa and which was formerly regarded as the nominate subspecies of Himantopus himantopussensu lato. The scientific name Himantopus comes from the Greek meaning "strap foot" or "thong foot". Most sources today accept 2–4 species. It is sometimes called pied stilt, but that name is now reserved for the Australian species, Himantopus leucocephalus.

The Hawaiian coot, also known as the ʻalae kea in Hawaiian, is a bird in the rail family, Rallidae, that is endemic to Hawaiʻi. In Hawaiian, ʻalae is a noun and means mud hen. Kea or its synonym keo is an adjective for white. It is similar to the American coot at 33–40.6 cm (13.0–16.0 in) in length and weighing around 700 g (1.5 lb). It has black plumage and a prominent white frontal shield. Its natural habitats are freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, coastal saline lagoons, and water storage areas. The bird was federally listed in October 1970 as an endangered species and is considered both endemic and endangered by the state of Hawaii. It is threatened by habitat loss and introduced predators such as the small Asian mongoose. The Makalawena Marsh on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi has been listed as a National Natural Landmark to preserve one of its last nesting areas.

The common moorhen is a bird species in the family Rallidae. It is distributed across many parts of the Old World.

Public use

Refuge wetlands are closed to the public to protect the endangered waterbirds and taro crops. Limited access is allowed along a county river road. There are interpretive panels located at the Hanalei Valley overlook, across from the Princeville Shopping Center. A new overlook/visitor center is planned for an area adjacent to the refuge near the existing rudimentary overlook.^[4]

A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is inundated by water, either permanently or seasonally, where oxygen-free processes prevail. The primary factor that distinguishes wetlands from other land forms or water bodies is the characteristic vegetation of aquatic plants, adapted to the unique hydric soil. Wetlands play a number of functions, including water purification, water storage, processing of carbon and other nutrients, stabilization of shorelines, and support of plants and animals. Wetlands are also considered the most biologically diverse of all ecosystems, serving as home to a wide range of plant and animal life. Whether any individual wetland performs these functions, and the degree to which it performs them, depends on characteristics of that wetland and the lands and waters near it. Methods for rapidly assessing these functions, wetland ecological health, and general wetland condition have been developed in many regions and have contributed to wetland conservation partly by raising public awareness of the functions and the ecosystem services some wetlands provide.

Princeville is a 9,000-acre (3,600 ha), upscale, unincorporated, master-planned community of homes and condos on the north shore of the island of Kauai in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 2,158 at the 2010 census, up from 1,698 at the 2000 census. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Princeville as a census-designated place (CDP). The census definition of the area may not precisely correspond to local understanding of the area with the same name.

Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge includes the Hoʻopulapula Haraguchi Rice Mill, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.^[5] A nonprofit association conducts historic and environmental education activities for local school groups and visitors under a Special Use Permit.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Notes

↑ "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
↑ "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
↑ 16 U.S.C. 1534, Endangered Species Act of 1973
1 2 "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Fws.gov. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
↑ "National Register of Historic Places Research Page - National Register of Historic Places Official Website-Part of the National Park Service". Nps.gov. Retrieved 2009-11-11.

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References

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[1] "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.

[2] "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.

[3] 16 U.S.C. 1534, Endangered Species Act of 1973

[fws.gov-4] 1 2 "Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge". Fws.gov. Retrieved 2009-11-11.

[5] "National Register of Historic Places Research Page - National Register of Historic Places Official Website-Part of the National Park Service". Nps.gov. Retrieved 2009-11-11.