A large, invasive beetle is spreading on Oʻahu. First detected in December 2013 at a golf course near the Honolulu airport, the coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) was confined to central and west Oʻahu during the early years of the infestation, thanks to the work of Coconut Rhinocerous Beetle Response – the interagency team that formed to address it. But since the summer of 2022, the project has seen an explosion of detections, with CRB infestations discovered at new locations on the island. The beetles have not been detected on any of the neighbor islands, but it’s likely just only a matter of time before they arrive.

Coconut palms are the preferred host, but the beetles also live on other palms, banana trees, sugar cane, agave, and even ironwood, taro, and hala. Mature coconut trees can typically withstand feeding damage, but juvenile plants often die. Over time, as mature trees age out, an entire species of palm can disappear. Endangered native palms – loulu – are especially at risk.

At 2 ½ inches long, these large, black beetles are nocturnal and can fly up to two miles, spending most of their lives hidden high in the tops of coconuts, boring into the crowns of healthy palm trees. Adults bore through unopened leaves to feed on the sap. An adult female beetle emerges from the crown to lay up to 140 eggs in its lifetime in nearby mulch piles or decomposed tree stumps. Plump, brown-headed larvae with bluish-grey tails are huge – ranging from two to four inches long.

Through a coordinated partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture (HDOA), and other key organizations, the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle Response team has been working to stem the tide of this invasive pest on Oʻahu. The team’s multi-pronged strategy includes the placement of pheromone traps, detector dogs, treatment of high-risk materials, quarantine protocols, research, and outreach. Arisa Barcinas is the Outreach Specialist for CRB Response, and champions successful control of CRB. “When green waste is managed properly,” she explains, “It can drastically reduce an infestation and allow damaged palms to grow back.”

The beetles spread to new places by hitchhiking in the holds of aircraft and through movement of nursery stock, compost, and mulch. To contain the beetle and prevent its spread to other islands, HDOA declared Oahu a CRB quarantine zone. Businesses must complete a series of steps before moving high-risk material, like mulch or host palms. Before being shipped, HDOA inspects and treats the material using high heat or fumigation. If beetle damage is detected, plants don’t move. Plants and materials are inspected again at their destination to ensure there are no hitchhikers.

Early detection efforts have been in place to prevent the spread to other islands. The Maui Invasive Species Committee’s (MISC) Early Detection team conducts regular surveys for CRB. Staff on Maui and Molokai (Molokai Invasive Species Committee) monitor traps at the airport twice a month.

Prevention and reporting are critical to catching this pest early. Barcinas says, “It’s important to understand how devastating CRB can be if it spreads to other islands. Community involvement is crucial to prevent the establishment of this pest in other places.” Her team has been increasing its work on neighbor islands by installing more traps and coordinating logistics to bring over detection dogs for surveys.

The most obvious sign of this beetle’s presence are bore holes in the crowns of palm trees or v-cut formations in the leaves. Using mulch and compost right away by spreading it thinly, rather than storing it in piles, is another way to prevent beetle breeding habitat and undetected infestations. Suspect CRB on Maui should be reported immediately to 643pest.org. Make sure to upload a photo of the beetle and/or signs of damage and note the exact location in the report. A pest prevention training describing CRB and other invasive species is offered to nurseries and can be found at plantpono.org. More information about this pest and compliant businesses on Oʻahu are at crbhawaii.org.

Serena Fukushima is the public relations and education specialist for the Maui Invasive Species Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and a graduate degree in education from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Kia’i Moku, Guarding the Island” is written by the Maui Invasive Species Committee to provide information on protecting the island from invasive plants and animals that threaten our islands’ environment, economy and quality of life.

This article was originally published in the Maui News on January 14, 2023 as part of the Kia‘i Moku Column from the Maui Invasive Species Committee.

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In early November, a wildfire ripped through nearly 2,100 acres of parched land in West Maui. The fire blazed across the landscape, then quickly moved upwards through one of the last and highly diverse native ecosystems left on Maui, destroying some of the last remaining endangered flora and fauna on earth. Unlike many forests around the world that depend on wildfire, Hawaiian forests are not adapted to wildfire cycles (The only natural wildfire occurrence in our islands happens around volcanic events). and are slow to recover after a fire event. Where once an ecologically diverse environment thrived, invasive species quickly move in.

Most of Hawaii’s fire zones were once home to diverse native dryland forest. Since the introduction of invasive ungulates and plant species, over 90% of the original Hawaiian dry forests have been destroyed across the state. When the forest disappeared, introduced, invasive grasses adapted to fire moved in. Melissa Chimera, Pacific Fire Exchange Coordinator for the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization notes that Hawaii has one of the largest footprints of wildfire impact per landmass in the United States. “With the decline in agriculture around the state, large swaths of abandoned farm lands were replaced with fire prone invasive grasses,” Chimera says, “Grasses like guinea grass and fountain grass (found on Hawaiʻi Island) create a fire cycle, quickly burning then reestablishing in the bare ground.” Not only does fire affect people and native forest, but runoff from bare ground post fire moves into oceans, smothering coral reefs. Chimera also notes that the latest predictions for Hawaiʻi is expecting some of the most drastic effects of the climate crisis by mid-century. Heavy rains, followed by prolonged drought, creates an increased fire risk as well- boosting growth of invasive grasses which then dry up and become fire starters at a landscape level. Areas like Lāhainā, dominated by these invasive grasslands, are an example of one area caught in the fire cycle.

Kim Thayer, Program Associate with the Mauna Kahālāwai Watershed Partnership, works in some of the last dryland forest found in West Maui. Already battling invasive ungulates looking to feast on these precious plants, climate change induced drought has quickly dried up the area. Thayer notes, “Before the fire, it was so dry. Even the aalii, one of our most resilient native plants, was crispy.” When the fire took off, legs of it raced 4,500 feet to the peak of Helu, a steeply cliffed slice of land south of Kauaʻula Valley. “There is an assemblage of plants that are so specific to that place, they don’t exist anywhere else on the mountain, let alone the world”, Thayer says of Helu. The names of extremely rare species such as Cyanea heluensis and Stenogyne kauaulaensis lend to how specific these plants are to this area. While the earth was still smoldering, her team did an aerial survey to get an idea of the extent of the burn. Thayer laments, “The forest burned down to the ground in some of the places.” As of publication of this article, it was too ashy for the helicopter to land safely to do a boots on the ground survey to survey the extent of the damage and what was lost, but the outcome is looking grim.

When native forest is burned, there is a possibility of regrowth from an established seed bank or older trees. But invasive grasses grow faster, and outcompete the slower growing natives in an area. The added pressure from feral pigs and axis deer create a disastorous recipe for native forest resilience after repeated fire pressure.

As we move into climate change induced weather events, including wildfires, Chimera encourages people to take action. “The time to prepare for a wildfire is not when the fire is moving your way, but now”. She recommends several ways to get fire ready: Keeping access open for emergency personnel, clearing excess vegetation around your home, and using fireproof materials (like metal roofs) to harden your home. A plethora of resources and research can be found at pacificfireexchange.org.

As for restoration efforts in Helu, Mauna Kahālāwai is still assessing the damage and navigating complicated logistics to access the isolated peak. Looking ahead, Both Chimera and Thayer believe that landscape level invasive grass control is key to reducing wildfire occurrences. Mauna Kahālāwai Watershed Partnership has been working in Olowalu Valley in partnership with Kīpuka Olowalu to create a native plant green belt with the goal of planting 1,000 plants to restore the riparian corridor and help with fire suppression. A few valleys down, Keʻeaumoku Kapu, a resident of Kauaʻula Valley, has been organizing a similar project to restore the charred earth with lush native species. Find out more and how to volunteer with both groups at www.maunakahalawai.org and by emailing Kapu at kapukapuakea@gmail.com.

Serena Fukushima is the public relations and education specialist for the Maui Invasive Species Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and a graduate degree in education from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Kia’i Moku, Guarding the Island” is written by the Maui Invasive Species Committee to provide information on protecting the island from invasive plants and animals that threaten our islands’ environment, economy and quality of life.

This article was originally published in the Maui News on December 10, 2022 as part of the Kia‘i Moku Column from the Maui Invasive Species Committee.

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Knowing what to plant and where can be tricky. Planting guides from the Hawaiian moon calendar to publications from the University of Hawaiʻi’s Cooperative Extension Service all help. They offer information and guidance on proper soil conditions and sun requirements, but did you know that along with these great resources, there are also tools and guides to help ensure that the plants themselves are pono?
Programs offered for growers and nurseries through Plant Pono can do just that. Plant Pono is a partnership between the Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species, the Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Council, and the Landscape Industry Council of Hawaiʻi.

First, there’s the Plant Pono Endorsement Program. The program relies on the Hawaiʻi Pacific Weed Risk Assessment (HPWRA). HPWRA is an evaluation of a plant’s potential to become invasive and cause harm in Hawaiʻi. An assessor with the HPWRA looks at the characteristics of a plant – from growing requirements to the number of seeds it produces – and takes into consideration the conditions present in Hawaiʻi -from pollinators to potential predators–to predict the plant’s potential to be invasive. The final result is a guideline for growers and gardeners indicating whether the plant has a low, moderate, or high risk of causing harm.

Businesses endorsed through the program have pledged to use plants that won’t become invasive. By voluntarily choosing to not sell high-risk plants, these businesses are demonstrating their commitment to Hawaiʻi and providing plants that won’t displace native species. At this time, the Pono Endorsement Program is only located on Hawaiʻi Island and Kauaʻi.

If you are not living on an island with a Pono Endorsement Program, the plantpono.org website is a great resource for both nurseries and consumers to look up if a plant is pono or not. With over a thousand plants listed in its database, it’s easy search tool helps to quickly find the perfect fit for your garden or landscape that will also not pose a threat to our greater environment.

But it’s not just the plants themselves that can pose a threat. Pests and diseases hitchhike in plants and shipping materials and are carried long-distance. Inspectors with the State and Federal Departments of Agriculture check plants for unwanted pests and pathogens before and when they arrive in Hawaiʻi. A new program will help provide the tools for identification in the hands of growers as well as inspectors.
The Plant Pest Prevention Training is advanced training for growers to help them know what and where to look for hitchhiking pests. It also includes the steps they can take to stop these species. Covering everything from murder hornets to coconut pathogens, the goal of the program is to build capacity for detecting these problems early. By increasing the number of trained eyes out there looking, the Plant Pest Prevention Training provides additional layers of protection against hitchhiking pests. Information regarding pest distribution can help with purchasing decisions.

Developed with grant funding through the USDA Plant Protection Act 7721, the training will be launched and offered by staff at the county-based Invasive Species Committees to interested nurseries this year. Just like the Pono Endorsement program, participation is voluntary for this training.

As you make your plant purchasing choices this growing season, ask your vendors if they are aware of Plant Pono and the tools offered to nurseries. Visit plantpono.org to learn more.

Serena Fukushima is the public relations and education specialist for the Maui Invasive Species Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and a graduate degree in education from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Kia’i Moku, Guarding the Island” is written by the Maui Invasive Species Committee to provide information on protecting the island from invasive plants and animals that threaten our islands’ environment, economy and quality of life.

This article was originally published in the Maui News on March 12, 2022 as part of the Kia‘i Moku Column from the Maui Invasive Species Committee.

Read more Kiaʻi Moku articles