HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-04-11 Kahaluu Beach Park Closure in May for Coral Spawning -- press release
Roxcie L. Waltjen
Harry Kim
Director
Mayor
Maurice C. Messina
Wil Okabe
Deputy Director
Managing Director
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
101 Pauahi Street, Suite 6 Hilo, Hawai‘i 96720
(808) 961-8311 Fax (808) 961-8411
Email: parks_recreation@hawaiicounty.gov
http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/parks-and-recreation/
April 11, 2019
NEWS RELEASE
Kahalu‘u Beach Park to Close on May 20-21 Due to Coral Spawning
Hawai‘i County Department of Parks and Recreation is informing the public that
Kahalu’u Beach Park will be closed on May 20 and May 21, 2019 due to anticipated
coral spawning events.
According to the Division of Aquatic Resources and Eyes of the Reef Network,
cauliflower coral (Pocillopora meandrina) was once abundant on shallow coral reefs
along West Hawai'i, including Kahalu'u Bay. However, environment stressors and very
high ocean temperatures impacted West Hawai'i in 2015 and caused catastrophic
bleaching and mortality of more than 90% of the regional population of cauliflower
coral.
To recover from this loss in the coral population, natural reproduction events are
critically important. For more than a decade, researchers have observed annual
broadcast spawning events for cauliflower corals, and can now accurately predict when
they will likely occur based on season, solar, tidal, and lunar cycles.
During broadcast spawning events, corals emit reproductive cells ("gametes") into the
water column and these materials are carried by the tides to mix and generate
planktonic coral larvae. The high volume of daily visitors to Kahalu'u Bay may cause
harm to larval corals due to physical and chemical disturbances (e.g. sunscreens and
other personal care items) in surface waters of the bay. In recent studies, oxybenzone
chemicals in sunscreens were shown to cause damage to larval corals and prevent
successful settlement on the reef.
After many years of unsuccessful cauliflower coral larvae settlement within a laboratory
setting, the very first successful settlement occurred last year at the Natural Energy
Laboratory of Hawaii Authority (NELHA) on Hawaii Island. Undisturbed by pollutants
and human activity, it took as little as 24 hours for coral gametes to find proper colony
areas within the tanks.
County of Hawai‘i is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer.
Minimizing pollutants and physical disturbances within the spawning period in their
natural environment will help ensure that corals are able to successfully reproduce and
settle properly.
The Department of Parks & Recreation and the Kahalu’u Bay Education Center
appreciate the public’s understanding and respect for this important coral recovery and
replenishment process at Kahalu'u Bay. We also apologize for any inconvenience the
temporary closure may cause.
For more information, please contact the Kahalu’u Bay Education Center at
(808) 895-1010.
County of Hawai‘i is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer.