Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge

A green sea turtle in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge

Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge is a 254,418-acre property that is now part of the Papahánaumokuákea Marine National Monument in the northwestern Hawaiian Islands. This is an environment of islands, atolls and submerged habitats. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency scientists estimate that there are more species of fish endemic to this area of the ocean than anywhere else on Earth, and the deeper you go into the water, the greater the percentage of fish that live nowhere else on Earth.

Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1909 when President Theodore Roosevelt signed legislation setting aside the northwestern Hawaiian Islands as a preserve and breeding ground for native birds. The refuge stretches across about 1,200 miles of ocean between the island of Kauai and Midway Atoll.

The National Marine Monument was established in 2006 and was immediately the largest marine conservation preserve in the world. Also included in the National Monument is Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

Down about 100 feet in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Down about 100 feet in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Down about 300 feet in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Down about 300 feet in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Map of the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge area northwest of most islands of Hawaii
Click on the map for a larger version

Photos and maps courtesy of the NOAA