The National Fish and Wildlife Fund’s Hawai‘i Conservation Program aims to strategically protect and enhance essential habitats in Hawai‘i, from mauka to makai (from the mountains to the ocean), to reduce extinction risk and sustain resilient populations of native species.
Partners
Hawai‘i hosts a high percentage of endemic species found nowhere else on Earth. Unfortunately, native ecosystems and biodiversity are under threat. Of the more than 10,000 native Hawaiian flora and fauna species, most are ill-equipped to survive the challenges presented by accidental and intentional introductions of non-native species and diseases. Further, the additive stress of climate change and development are rapidly degrading habitats and driving native species towards extinction. Urgent action is needed to prevent the extinction of Hawaiʻi’s unique native species and to restore the health of its forests and coral reefs.
To address the threats identified above, the Hawai‘i Conservation Program will fund projects to:
- Restore and improve native watershed function and biodiversity
- Reduce the extinction risk for a suite of endemic bird species by addressing direct threats and improving habitat conditions
- Foster healthy coral reef ecosystems that are resilient to current and predicted environmental stressors by reducing local threats within an interconnected network of reef tracts in Maui Nui.
| Hawai'i Conservation Program 2024 Grant Slate and Fact Sheet | Download the PDF | |
| Hawai'i Conservation Program 2023 Grant Slate and Fact Sheet | Download the PDF | |
| Hawaiʻi Conservation Business Plan | Download the PDF | |
| 2022 Grant Slate | Download the PDF |
Director, Western Regional Office
Senior Manager, Alaska and Pacific Islands Programs
Coordinator, Regional Programs
Related Species
Hawaiian forest birds
Due to its geographic isolation, Hawaii has unique fauna and flora that are particularly vulnerable to changes in their environment. In fact, Hawaii is considered the species extinction capital of the United States. This especially true for endemic birds; 98 of 142 known endemic bird species having gone extinct since human arrival to Hawaii. Currently, 33 of Hawaii's remaining 44 endemic birds are listed under the Endangered Species Act. Eleven of those have not been seen for decades and are likely extinct.
Corals
Found in shallow, tropical waters around the world, coral reefs are among the most iconic and diverse ecosystems on earth. Despite covering less than 1 percent of the ocean, 25 percent of marine species rely on coral reefs, which are made up of many different species of coral. While corals are threatened by pollution, overfishing, disease and increasing ocean temperature resulting in widespread mortality, local conservation efforts coupled with advancements in coral restoration show promise for conserving this important ecosystem.
Alalā
Fossil record shows that the Alalā, or Hawaiian crow, is the only one of the original five species of crow in Hawaii to survive extinction thus far. While the bird has been extinct in the wild since 20002, a captive rearing program has been successful in growing the global population from 10 to more than 120 individuals. In 2016, an ambitious re-introduction program launched with the goal to re-establish a self-sustaining population of Alalā in native forests on the island of Hawaii.
Palila
The palila is a unique finch-billed Hawaiian honeycreeper currently restricted to a narrow range of dry-forest forest on the volcano of Mauna Kea on Hawaii’s big Island. Palila are ecologically dependent on māmane, an endemic dry-forest tree that produces seed pods which are the primary food source for this species.
Black-footed albatross
The black-footed albatross is the smallest of three north Pacific albatrosses. Populations of all three species were devastated by feather hunters during the early 20th century with many colonies extirpated in the central and western Pacific. Today 95 percent of the global population nests in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.
