Auwahi Dry Forest Reforestation Project
A few weeks ago I was part of a Maui Camera Club outing where we had the chance to participate and photorgraph the magnificent work the people of the Auwahi Dry Forest Reserve Reforestation Project are doing.
It is absolutely unreal. The Auwahi Dry Forest is one of Hawai’i's most endangered areas. A very limited staff and a generous group of volunteers have been joining efforts and working hard to recreate this dying paradise, and they are succeeding !!!
The last few surviving trees were not giving seeds so there was no new generations coming. The cycle of life was interrupted. The whole ecosystem had to be recreated, from its very foundation, the soil. They seed grass that later turns into soil rich of nutrients. They remove all invasive species, animals are kept outside by a fence. And finally native plants and trees are planted. Then Nature takes care of the rest.
Take a virtual tour of the reserve and hopefully you’ll feel motivated, contact the Leeward Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership and Maui Restoration Group, (808) 573-8989 by email to auwahi@yahoo.com
Big Mahalos to Diana, Erica, Keahi, Luke, Ka’ai, Fernando, Ainoa, Alesa, and Andrea for such a good job and excellent example.
By the way, planting a tree with your own hands is an experience on its own !!!
More information about Dry Forests
More information about Auwahi
Hace unas semanas atras junto al Maui Camera Club tuvimos la oportunidad de particpar y fotografiar el magnifico trabajo que el grupo del Proyecto de Reforestacion de la Reserva de Bosque Seco de Auwahi esta llegando a cabo.
Parece irreal. El Bosque Seco de Auwahi es una de las areas en mayor riesgo de extincion de las islas. Un personal muy reducido y un generoso numero de voluntarios han unido esfuerzos para recrear este paraiso perdido, y estan triunfando !
Los ultimos arboles sobrevivientes no daban retoños por lo que no habia nuevas generaciones. El ciclo de vida se habia roto. El ecosistema completo debio ser recreado, desde su misma base, el suelo. Ellos siembran pasto que se convertira en un suelo rico en nutrientes. Remueven las especies invasivas y mantienen los animales fuera del area protegida por un cerco. Finalmente plantan especies autoctonas de plantas y arboles. La naturaleza se ocupa del resto.
Hagan una visita virtual a la reserva visitando las fotos.
Muchisimas gracias a Diana, Erica, Keahi, Luke, Ka’ai, Fernando, Ainoa, Alesa, y Andrea por tan buen trabajo y tan lindo ejemplo.
Y ya que estamos, plantar un arbol con tus propias manos es toda una experiencia en si misma.
Mas informacion sobre Leeward Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership y el Maui Restoration Group
Mas informacion sobre Dry Forests (Bosques Secos)
More information about Auwahi
