Appendix: Waianae Conservation Area Summary

Hawaiian High Islands Ecoregion
This page last revised 31 August 2006 -- S.M.Gon III

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Achatinella mustelina Photo by Bill Mull

Endangered tree snail Achatinella mustelina, endemic to the Wai'anae Mountains, O'ahu.

Endemic lobeliad Cyanea superba in Lowland Mesic habitat, Wai'anae Mountains, O'ahu.

'Elepaio, a native flycatcher. Photo Eric Vanderwurf

The endangered O'ahu 'elepaio (Chasiempis sandwichensis ibidis) nests in the forests of the Wai'anae Conservation Area.

Wai‘anae Conservation Area Profile

Major Habitat Type: Tropical Moist Forest(Oceania Realm)

Stratification Unit:O‘ahu (comprised of the single island of O‘ahu, see below)The island is noted for a high level of botanical endemism.

Island: O‘ahu; the third largestisland of the archipelago, ca 2.2 million years old, maximum elevation Ka‘ala, Wai‘anae Mountains, 1,220 m(4,003 ft). Bearing two conservation areas: Wai‘anae and Ko‘olau (maximum elevation, Konahuanui, 946 m (3105 ft),corresponding to the two main shield volcanoes that comprise theisland. Most populous island in the archipelago, with >85% of thestate's human population.

Significance: TheWai‘anae Conservation Area is comprised of ecologicalsystems from lowland to montaneelevations. The steep summit area maintains high viability systems,serves watershed functions, and provides habitat for manynatural communities and species. The Wai‘anae Mountains rivals Kaua‘i in richness of endemic species of flowering plants.

ConservationStatus: The Wai‘anae Conservation Area is protected and managed by acombination of private and public protected areas, including the Mt.Ka‘ala StateNatural Area Reserve, the Pahole State Natural Area Reserve, the State Forest ReserveSystem, The Nature Conservancy's Honouliuli Preserve and the state Conservation District. Active conservation management is also underway via the Army's Ecosystem Management Program,involving endangered species and habitat across the Wai‘anae andKo‘olau conservation areas. Such actions are included in adiscussion of conservation strategies for O‘ahu.

A Conservation Action Plan for Wai‘anae has not yet been drafted.

Kaala vista
Native montane wet forest on the summit of Ka'ala, Wai'anae Mountains

Conservation Targets:

Ecological Systems: Three ecological systems of Wai‘anae were selected as conservationtargets, each bearing nested natural communities and species (discussedbelow).

System	Size	Condition	LC	Overall
Montane Wet	POOR	GOOD	VERY GOOD	FAIR
Lowland Wet	POOR	POOR	VERY GOOD	FAIR
Wet Cliff	POOR	GOOD	VERY GOOD	FAIR
Dry Cliff	POOR	FAIR	FAIR	FAIR

Lowland Dry and Mesic Systems have POOR viability and are not included.

Special Ecological Features:

Waterbird Concentration

The O‘ahu Waterbird Concentration is defined as five core wetlands and at least ten of 13 wetland sites identified by the USFWSWaterbird Recovery Plan (2005). These include coastal, and riverinesites outside of but adjacent to the ecological system targets of both Ko‘olau and Wai‘anae conservation areas.

Nested Targets:

Natural Communities:

‘Ōhi‘a/Uluhe Lowland Wet Forest
‘Ōhi‘a/Mixed Shrub Lowland Wet Forest
‘Ōhi‘a/Mixed Shrub Montane Wet Forest
‘Ōhi‘a/‘Ōlapa Montane Wet Forest
Koa/‘Ōhi‘a Lowland Mesic Forest
O‘ahu Diverse Mesic Forest
Mixed Fern/Shrub Wet Cliff Community
Mixed Shrub Dry Cliff Community

Native species:

There are manyconstituent native species that comprise the natural communities of the ConservationArea. Highlights include over 60 rare/endangered plant species, over 350 endemicplant species, and likely thousands of endemic invertebrate species.

Major Threats:Uncontrolledferal ungulates (primarily pigs, goats, deer); and a large variety ofinvasivealien plants, particularly Christmas berry (Schinus terebinthifolius), molasses grass (Melinis minutiflora), Koster's curse (Clidemia hirta), and strawberry guava (Psidium cattelianum). Alien grasses and dry to mesic settings contribute to a large wildfire threat.

Thenative-dominated ecological systems of O‘ahu occupy theupper elevation areas of both Wai‘anae (West) and Ko‘olau(Northeast) mountains, extending downward into areas (pink) converted into anthropogenic andalien-dominated regions.

Ecological systems of the Island of O'ahu

Theportfolio for the Wai'anae conservation area includes only the upperelevation native dominated ecological systems of the Wai'anae Mountains(west).

Adiagrammatic crosssection of the Island of O‘ahu indicates the variety of moistureand elevation conditions present: a lowland wet summit (Ko`olauMountains), and mesic to dry systems, with a montane wet cap(Wai‘anae Mountains).

elevation and moisture settings of O'ahu