INVENTORY OF THREE INCIPIENT INVASIVE SPECIES IN THE VICINITY OF HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK Inventory and Monitoring Program Pacific Island Network Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, and Commonwealth of The Northern Mariana Islands 1 ROBERT CULBERTSON 1 currently at RR2 Box 3858, Pahoa, HI 96778 May 31, 2005 Agreement Number: CA8012AO001 Funding Sources: National Park Service, Inventory & Monitoring Program and Biological Resources Management Division File Name: I:\inventory\11-12_species-list-dist-status\havo-incipient-invasive-plant-maps- 02_I\CulbertsonR_2005_Invasives_050531.doc Organization Contact Information: National Park Service, Inventory and Monitoring Program, Pacific Island Network, PO Box 52, Hawaii National Park, HI 96718, phone: 808-985-6180, fax: 808-985-6111, http://www.nature.nps.gov/im/units/pacn/index.htm Recommended Citation: Culbertson, R. 2005. Inventory of Three Incipient Invasive Species in the Vicinity of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. USDI National Park Service, Inventory and Monitoring Program, Pacific Island Network. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii. 17 pg. Key words: Miconia calvescens, Eleutherodactylus coqui, frog, Sphaeropteris cooperi, Australian tree fern, alien species. Place key words: Hawaii, Pacific Island Network, Big Island, Volcano, Hilo Acronyms: BIISC Big Island Invasive Species Committee BIMAC Big Island Melastome Action Committee BRD Biological Resources Discipline GIS Geographic Information System GPS Global Positioning System HAVO Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park NPS National Park Service PACN Pacific Island Network USGS United States Geological Survey i TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents ................................................................................................ ii List of Tables ...................................................................................................... iii List of Figures .................................................................................................... iii Abstract ............................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1 Miconia Calvescens – Background ................................................................... 2 Methods ......................................................................................................... 2 Results ........................................................................................................... 3 Discussion ..................................................................................................... 3 Recommendations ......................................................................................... 5 Eleutherodactylus Coqui - Background ............................................................ 5 Methods ......................................................................................................... 5 Results ........................................................................................................... 6 Discussion ..................................................................................................... 9 Recommendations ......................................................................................... 9 Sphaeropteris cooperi – Background ............................................................. 10 Methods ....................................................................................................... 10 Results ......................................................................................................... 11 Discussion ................................................................................................... 12 Recommendations ....................................................................................... 13 Acknowledgments ............................................................................................ 14 Literature Cited ................................................................................................. 14 Appendix – Public Outreach Flyers Prepared by BIISC ................................ 15 ii LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Miconia survey areas, surveyed from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004.. .................................................................................................... 2 Table 2. Coqui frog survey areas, surveyed from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004. ..................................................................................................... 6 Table 3. Volcano area reports of coqui and new populations from 1998 to 2003. ........................................................................................ 9 Table 4. Australian tree fern survey area, surveyed from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004. ............................................................................... 10 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Map of subdivisions surveyed for miconia, coqui frog, and Australian tree fern from July 16, 3003 to January 21, 2004. ................................ 3 Figure 2. Map showing miconia detections during the survey conducted from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004.. ...................................................... 4 Figure 3. Map of coqui frog detections, including captures and unconfirmed reports.. ................................................................................................. 8 Figure 4. Map of Australian tree fern detections made from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004. ............................................................................... 12 iii ABSTRACT This report describes survey activities related to three invasive species: (Miconia calvescens, (miconia); Eleutherodactylus coqui, (coqui frog); and Sphaeropteris cooperi, (Australian tree fern), which are incipient threats to Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park (HAVO). The project consisted of conducting surveys in and around HAVO to develop distribution and abundance maps for three of the most serious alien species threats on land proximal to HAVO. The results of this survey indicate that miconia is present in the Eden Roc and Fern Forest subdivisions located approximately seven miles east of HAVO. Numerous isolated male frogs and two or three new breeding populations were recorded. In total, 51 male frogs were captured by hand, and an estimated 12 to 15 were exterminated with citric acid spray. At this time, frogs are not present in HAVO, and most sightings in the Volcano area are isolated frogs that have not established breeding colonies. Australian tree ferns are located primarily in three areas within several miles of HAVO, including the Volcano Golf Course and Country Club, Volcano Village and Mauna Loa Estates. As a result of this project, 36 Australian tree ferns were destroyed by nine homeowners. INTRODUCTION Managers at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park (HAVO) have developed a comprehensive strategy for managing alien-plant invasions inside the park. The central strategy is control of multiple widespread species in high priority sites called Special Ecological Areas. Also controlled are invasive species newly established in the park, typically on roadways or developed areas. Additionally, HAVO participates in partnerships with other agencies on Hawai`i Island such as the interagency Big Island Invasive Species Committee (BIISC), to control incipient invasive species on an island-wide basis. This includes control of species which have not yet spread to the park. Such a partnership has been successful in controlling Miconia calvescens, a tropical rain-forest tree found outside the park. The need to develop maps of distribution and abundance of the most serious alien-species threats proximal to the park was considered a high priority by the convened panel of plant taxa experts at the Vegetation Working Group of the National Park Service Biological Inventories Workshop held in Kona, Hawaii on January 27, 2000. Since then, the National Park Service (NPS) has developed a multi-park Exotic Plant Management Team to defend the Hawaiian parks from weed invasion. The team not only works on alien species inside the parks but also incipient species outside the parks. Three incipient species identified for control around HAVO are Miconia calvescens, (miconia), Eleutherodactylus coqui, (coqui frog), and Sphaeropteris cooperi, (Australian tree fern). For this study, continuous loop surveys were conducted in and around HAVO from July 16, 2003 to January 21, 2004 in an effort to determine the distribution of these three invasive species. 1 MICONIA CALVESCENS – BACKGROUND Miconia calvescens is considered the most invasive and damaging of alien plant species to wet forests in the Pacific islands, and poses a threat to all habitats in Hawaii receiving 1,800-2,000 mm (75-80 inches) or more of annual precipitation (Loope 1997). The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) considers miconia the State’s most dangerous noxious weed. The plant is native to Central and South America and was brought to Hawaii State in the 1950’s. It was introduced to the Big Island in the vicinity of Onomea along the Hamakua Coast in the 1960’s (Loope 1997) and currently occupies over 25,000 acres (BIISC 2004). The core infestation extends from Onomea to Pahoa, and the perimeter of the infestation extends from the slopes above Onomea, south to Fern Forest in upper Puna, and Leilani Estates in lower Puna. The plant produces prodigious seeds, which are transported