Native Hawaiian Mammals

When guests come to our island and see the tropical rainforest and sunny beaches they often ask our guides where are the animals? The answer is our native animals are mostly birds, some reptiles, insects and two native land mammals: The `Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua (Hawaiian monk seal) and the ʻōpeʻapeʻa (Hawaiian hoary bat). This is because the three W’s brought our native plants and animals to the Hawaiian islands: Water, Wind and Wings. It is not probable that a larger mammal would have been able to make its way to the Hawaiian islands and then have numbers large enough to survive. We love our lush bird filled island and recommend that our guests take a minute or two to listen to their songs when we enter their habitat.