Waving palms...pounding surf...flowers...beaches...surely this goes on forever. Depends on what you mean by 'forever.'

Overseeing these isles of bliss used to be the task of ancient gods, but now two national parks; 67 state parks, more than 100 county parks--some underwater--and a spate of dedicated organizations are protecting the treasures of these young islands from demolition before their time. Time? Isn't Paradise forever? Once 2000 miles of isolation was enough. Now it takes education, vigilance and care to fend off extinction. Hawaii's title as "the endangered species capital of the U.S." is only too well deserved. More than 75 percent of the native birds are gone or threatened; more than 250 Hawaiian species of plants and animals are on the endangered list. Even those waving palms are not natives.

It's not just people who come to the islands, but plant-devouring insects; rodents with no natural enemies and an appetite for bird eggs; plants that crowd out and smother the native species; omnivorous goats; feral pigs. The state bird, the nene or Hawaiian goose, was coaxed back from the brink of extinction (30) into merely endangered (800). Even the state flower, the yellow hibiscus, is no longer plentiful.

The Hawaii Nature Center plus the Hawaiian chapters of The Nature Conservancy and Sierra Club have programs and guided tours for adults and children that are frequent, inexpensive and range from ecological sightseeing to hands-on work in the field. Trail maps are available too.

For example, from the Hawaii Nature Center in upper Makiki Valley, Oahu, the Makiki/Tantalus/Manoa trail leads through dense vegetation and rain forest (often complete with boisterous showers). Oahu's highest peak, 4,020 ft. Mt. Kaala, looms on the leeward side of the island. The hiking trail on the Makapuu Peninsula---one of many trails of varying difficulty---skirts richly endowed tidal pools on its way to the Makapuu Lighthouse.

On the windward side, the Koolau Range with wet upland forests, steep cliffs and deep valleys is dense with tropical vegetation. The lizard with eyes as big as marbles and a face that would frighten Stephen King blinks and disappears, but you are wrong to think he is one of the species under siege. Most likely he is an African chameleon bought at an exotic-pet shop and released by its bored owner. The Hawaiian archipelago offers 200 habitats within six main terrestrial biological regions: coast; dry forest; wet forest; epiphytic vegetation; bogs; alpine zone. As you go between islands you will see all these and more. More because there is also the sea itself. Whale watching especially in the prime months of January and February is all but mandatory. If you snorkel or dive you will encounter the butterflies as well as the denizens of the deep. Hawaii encompasses 21 of the planet's 22 climatic zones with 88 eco-systems from snowy mountaintops to rain forests to deserts to beaches (gold, white, black, green) plus the tallest sea cliffs and most active volcano. Coral reefs constitute underwater tropical worlds. Ninety percent of the flora exists naturally nowhere else on earth.

The natural attractions of the islands are monumental. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island has two volcanoes and accommodates visitors whose interests range from simply standing and staring in awe to those who would climb down into the collapsed summit of Mt. Kilauea or hike around the steaming pit of Halemaumau Crater.

On Maui, Haleakala National Park is at the summit of the dormant volcano, 10,500 feet above sea level. Helicopters hover over it like dragonflies, and horseback riders wind down the mountain's open mouth. Here the silversword blooms once in 50 years then dies a natural death. In the parking lot at the House of the Sun Visitors Center, nene geese cadge food from tourists.

In Kilauea Point National Wildlife Range on Kauai, seabirds, the rare Hawaiian green sea turtle, the Hawaiian monk seal and humpback whale get on with their lives. The Lawai and Allerton Gardens have the world's largest collection of native Hawaiian plants and 100 acres of tropical plants, pools and fountains. Kanepu’u, The Garden of the Gods, on Lanai is a lunar landscape.

Natural scientists flock to the laboratory of the Hawaiian Islands, and conservation associations--public and private--are in plentiful supply. They welcome questions from tourists and inevitably have need for volunteers. Yet the concern for ecology goes beyond the predictable organizations. Express an interest in the environment to the concierge at a posh resort hotel, and you will be supplied with marked regional eco-trail maps (the Maui Prince Hotel Makena Resort has a trail on its own property) or even directed to a staff member who is personally involved in the problems of the immediate area.

"Hawaii Calls" was the name of a radio program in the 1940s and 1950s considered largely responsible for building economic tourism on the islands. The message from Hawaii is different these days, and the plea is not entirely hedonistic. Responsible tourism may not have the answers, but it is at least addressing the questions.

Go to ECOTRAVEL in Africa & Europe
Go to ECOTRAVEL in the United Kingdom & Ireland
Go to ECOTRAVEL in the United States
Go to ECOTRAVEL in the Western Hemisphere

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