RareHawaii

PROBLEM OVERVIEW
Why does the State of Hawai‘i impose take restrictions that prevent hunters from contributing to population control of harmful invasive animals? Why is there no vertebrate pest list, no legal framework for the public to contribute to the management of pest animals? In Hawaii, there are no laws against transporting invasive animals such as pigs from place to place, releasing introduced vertebrates into the wild, and no responsibility required of individuals to help responsibly manage invasive animals. The Australian state of Queensland has similar invasive species, but has developed comprehensive policy and provides public information that Hawaii could adapt as a model.
	"Hunter’s delight, forest scourge." Pigs convert healthy watershed forests to erosion-prone weed patches by destroying native plants and opening up the ground so weeds can establish. They feed on tree seedlings so new trees cannot grow. The higher pig numbers grow, the faster the process of converting healthy watershed forests to exposed soil, unpalatable weeds and very aggressive plants such as strawberry guava, which do not capture groundwater very well. Pools of “pig-enriched” water (particularly in pig-hollowed hapu'u trunks) are deadly to native Hawaiian forest birds. Such puddles provide a perfect breeding ground for the mosquitoes that carry avian malaria and pox. Another mosquito-borne disease of humans, dengue fever, is aided by the same nutrient-rich puddles.
Language in the Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS 141-3) discourages the Hawaii Department of Agriculture from listing more animals as pests, and provides no incentive for individuals to behave responsibly or help manage such pests that are destroying our watersheds and natural heritage. The separation of DOFAW's game program from its primary mission of conservation has resulted in the needless and harmful polarization of hunting and conservation. Hunters could be helping to reduce the range and density of pigs, goats, sheep, deer, and wild cattle with extensive shooting in appropriate areas (outside the Game Management Areas). Instead, the state has produced no management strategy for invasive game animals and provides no rationale for its bizarre take restrictions. The program limits hunters to a small number of animals, limited days, and a truly ridiculous list of requirements for allowed weaponry in the hunting rules, section 13-123-22(b). Any legally obtained weapon should be allowed, and there should be no limit on the number of ungulates killed in a legal public hunting area that is not designated as a sustained-yield GMA, or on private land with the landowner's permission. As funding allows, the GMAs should be fenced to keep game animals in appropriate locations: away from crops, homes, critical habitat for endangered species, and our critically important upland watershed forests.

More than 50% of Hawaii's native flora is "at risk (extinct, endangered, vulnerable, or rare)." Much of this is due to habitat destruction by pigs, goats, sheep, deer, and feral cattle. These non-native animals are protected as "game mammals," though their populations have exploded to plague proportions and there is no justification for their status as protected species given their high birth rates. The beautiful plant at right, a species of Cyanea, or haha, was once thought to be extinct. It was very exciting when healthy plants were found still surviving in a remote area. Unfortunately, in Hawai‘i, endangered species are food for introduced goats and pigs, which found the plants (above).
	The rare Ka'u silversword at left (photo by Gerry Carr) was browsed by mouflon sheep, which were released for hunting on the island of Hawai'i in the 1960s. The State's game program never created a management plan to contain the animals in a limited area. From those few introduced animals, mouflon sheep now number in the thousands and range over the entire central portion of the island, but the State still imposes take restrictions, preventing hunters from helping to control them with adequate shooting. The sheep compete with ranchers' cattle for grazing, and leap fences put up in the past to exclude pigs and goats. To keep them out, managers must pay for 6-foot hogwire fencing.

	Hawai‘i lags behind the rest of the world in planning and implementing game management and animal control to protect its land, water, native species, economy, and human health. Until residents insist on effective game mammal control, these invasive species will continue to destroy our natural capital, agriculture, and future opportunities.
Above: Feeding pigs dug up these hapu‘u ferns. This shows why the forest dies "from the ground up." First the groundcover plants such as ferns and seedlings go, and invasive weeds exploit the openings. Larger native shrubs and trees are browsed by sheep, deer, and feral cattle, and are not replaced when they die because the animals eat all their seedlings. Soon, unpalatable weeds dominate the area. The puddles of water in dug-out hapu'u trunks harbor the most mosquito larvae of anyplace in the forest. Mosquitoes carry avian malaria and pox, which are killing off Hawaii's native forest birds. This picture was taken on Maui.
Feral pigs encroach on homes and crops, digging up yards, golf courses, and parks. All unfenced crops are at risk. Macadamia nut orchards may lose 40% or more of the crop to pigs, because the nuts are harvested from the ground. Pigs are also voracious predators that wait in pastures for sheep and goats to begin labor, then rip a half-born baby goat or lamb from its mother. Where pig density is high, farmers may lose half of their newborn animals to pig predation. Homeowners near natural areas are afraid to go outside at times because of feral pigs in their yards. Even in Manoa on the most urbanly settled island of Oahu, some families keep children indoors in the afternoons when pigs are known to enter people's yards. Grazing and browsing animals destroy the native forests that are Hawaii's best watersheds, prevent recovery of rare and endangered species, cause erosion that damages coral reefs and homes, and pollute the watersheds with disease. Game mammals are a major factor in the spread of alien plant species throughout the islands. The alien invasion is changing the character of the islands and the island lifestyle. Immediate, effective policy development is needed to reverse this trend.
Another look . . . before and after feral pigs
	It's hard to believe, but owners of domestic pigs sometimes release their animals in healthy native forests. Some hunters also introduce animals to new areas, a practice that is illegal in other states. This picture was taken in the Upper Hana rainforest, when it was pig-free.
	When the photographer came back three years later, pigs had moved in.
Summary
Hawai‘i’s island ecosystems evolved without the presence of hoofed mammals. The grazing, trampling, and rooting of these introduced animals is destroying the last populations of many rare species and permanently altering the unique character of irreplaceable ecosystems. Feral pigs and goats are counted among the world's worst invasive species. Hawai‘i is fighting an expensive and difficult war against invasive plants and animals, but there has been no strategy to truly control pigs or goats since bag limits were imposed in the 1950s. Taxpayers foot the bill for game mammal damage and for the State game program, which is used by just one half of one percent of residents. Taxpayers also pay for enforcement staff who must cite people for "poaching" invasive animals. Introduced game animals spread invasive weeds by opening up the forest floor and carrying weed seeds into new areas, on their feet and in their stomachs. These new populations of fruit-bearing weeds such as strawberry guava increase the carrying capacity for rats and pigs, further endangering native birds and plants. Countries such as Australia and New Zealand have laid the groundwork in research, planning and management of introduced hoofed animals. Mainland states where feral pigs are spreading rapidly are taking action to reverse the trend. Hawai‘i lags behind, but could make rapid progress by following these other models. The longer we wait to implement a serious, effective control program, the greater the costs. Extinction and forest modification are happening now. DOFAW will not be performing its stated mission to protect native ecosystems and watersheds until it implements true game management and control. Although the agency deserves credit for a number of important fencing projects, attempting to fence ubiquitous game animals out is a stopgap solution that does nothing for most areas, including agricultural concerns or residents facing encroaching animals. Most of Hawai‘i's State-managed natural areas continue to decline, used as feeding grounds for pigs, goats, deer, wild cattle, and sheep. Meaningful restoration of native forests and rare species is not possible under these conditions. A clear State policy that declares the invasive pest status of all introduced hoofed animals is urgently needed. Also long overdue is an adaptive management strategy to begin to reduce the number and range of such animals until they are either eradicated or securely fenced into an affordable, manageable amount of area, with a zero-tolerance policy for unfenced animals.




Rare Hawai‘i: Promoting better management of invasive animals in the islands Millions of years of evolution in isolation. Thousands of plant and animal species found nowhere else in the world. Introduced pigs, goats, deer, sheep, and wild cattle destroying native species, crops, and watersheds. More than 265 extinctions and counting.