`Ohi`a Lehua Rainforest: Born Among Hawaiian Volcanoes, Evolved in Isolation: The Story of a Dynamic Ecosystem with Relevance to Forests Worldwide

In the early 1970s, a multidisciplinary team of forest biologists began a study of Hawaiian ecosystems under the International Biological Program (IBP). Research focus was on the intact native ecosystems in and around Hawai?i Volcanoes National Park, in particular the ?Ohi?a lehua rainforest. Patches of dead `ohi`a stands had been reported from the windward slopes of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea. Subsequent air photo analyses by a team of US and Hawai`i State foresters discovered rapidly spreading `Ohi`a dieback, also called `Ohi`a forest decline. A killer disease was suspected to destroy the Hawaiian rain forest in the next 15-25 years. Ecological research continued with a focus on the dynamics of the Hawaiian rainforest. This book explains what really happened and why the `Ohi`a rainforest survived in tact as everyone can witness today.