Purpose
Each species listed under protection of the Endangered Species Act eventually has a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-approved recovery plan that outlines management objectives and recovery goals that, when met, will prompt de-listing of the species.  In the recovery plan for Ischaemum byrone, Big Island Plant Cluster Recovery Plan (USFWS 1996), NPS land managers are specifically asked to work with the USFWS, Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, research specialists, and other cooperators to:

• Protect current Ischaemum byrone populations on NPS properties and manage threats through:
• Ensuring the long-term protection of Ischaemum byrone habitat by delineating and prioritizing population management units for preservation and continuing to enhance protection on NPS lands.
• Develop management plans for each management unit considering the following:
• Determining the impacts of wildfire on plants and provide the necessary wildfire protection, including the development of detailed fire response plans.
• Determining and managing the impacts of recreational activities.
• Defining, documenting, and mitigating other potential and controllable threats to the species and revising management plans as needed.
• Expand existing wild populations, or create new populations on NPS lands within HI’s historical range by identifying populations for augmentation or selecting new population sites and helping to propagate material and prepare sites for augmentation/introduction.

The purpose of this demonstration project is primarily to assemble all known and available data concerning the endangered plant, Ischaemum byrone, for three National Park Service (NPS) units in Hawaii to assess potential threats to existing populations and identify locations potentially suitable for restoration in an effort to assist Hawaiian NPS units in meeting recovery plan management goals.  

Project Description
Three NPS units were chosen for the analysis: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (HAVO) (located on Hawaii), Haleakala National Park (HALE) (located on Maui), and Kalaupapa National Historic Site (KALA) (located on Molokai).  All three parks have coastal shrublands, the habitat where Ischaemum byrone typically occurs (USFWS 1996). However, the status of the grass, both in occurrence and additional level of federal protection, varies between parks: HAVO has current populations of the grass and USFWS designated critical habitat within park boundaries; HALE has current populations of the grass but no critical habitat; KALA has no current populations and no critical habitat.  These differences between parks present an interesting opportunity to use confirmed Ischaemum byrone datasets in HAVO and HALE to identify areas that are potentially suitable for restoration in other parts of those parks and in KALA.  Data layers such as lava flows, fire, and development and infrastructure are used to inform park managers to proximity of potential threats to extant populations as well as to help in selecting sites that are most ‘safe’ for restoration plantings.

This analysis of suitable habitat for potential restoration of Ischaemum byrone within these NPS units represents a starting point for park resource managers and restoration specialists in identifying threats to success of future restoration efforts for this and other coastal dry shrubland species of concern.  It also may serve as a discussion point for determining if designated critical habitat for Ischaemum byrone is large enough, effectively placed (since no critical habitat lies within the park boundary for HALE or KALA), or even necessary within park boundaries, given the ever-changing environment of lava landscapes.  Nevertheless, this analysis pulls together and gives spatial representation to some of the most important factors effecting current and potential Ischaemum byrone populations.

HAVO Analysis	HALE Analysis	KALA Analysis

Photos courtesy of NPS (www.nps.gov)

REFERENCES

Webpage, contents, and analyses by Jenny Mueller (jenny.mueller@colostate.edu) and Emily Spencer (espencer@cnr.colostate.edu) for NR 505 Concepts in GIS at Colorado State University. 12-5-07

Warner College of Natural Resources	Colorado State University