Mapping Plant Species Ranges in the Hawaiian Islands? Developing a Methodology and Associated GIS Layers

The Hawaiian Islands are home to nearly 1,200 native species of vascular plants, a large proportion of which either are listed as endangered, are candidates for such a listing, or are species of concern (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2012). A majority of these are restricted to a single island or are limited by habitat (Price, 2004); however, nonnative species now outnumber native species (Wagner and others,1990; Wagner and Herbst, 1999), and many nonnative species are invasive threats to native ecosystems (Cuddihy and Stone, 1990; Staples and Cowie, 2001).