A non-profit Friends Group supporting the three national wildlife refuges located on Kauaʻi.
Together, Friends can do so much…
Friends of Kauaʻi Wildlife Refuges (FKWR) serves as a nonprofit “Friends Group,” supporting the environmental and wildlife conservation, historic preservation and community education programs of the Kauaʻi National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex, which are administered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and includes Kīlauea Point NWR, Hanalei NWR and Hulēʻia NWR.
Our organization helps to fill in the gaps in the programs administered by the Refuge team by providing funding and Friends Group staffing to support a variety of refuge priorities. Friends of Kauaʻi Wildlife Refuges also manages the Friends Nature Store and Visitor Center at Kīlauea Point NWR, supports environmental education programs, administers an annual scholarship, conducts community outreach and much more!
Current Events, News and Activities
Overlook Closure at Kīlauea Point NWR
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) will be stabilizing the north-facing slope of the visitor overlook area just outside of the Kīlauea Point NWR entrance gate. Access to the overlook will be closed to the public from January 7th through February 17th while work is being conducted. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to providing an improved visitor overlook at Kīlauea Point NWR.
The north-facing slope at the viewing overlook is showing signs of significant erosion. Over the past 10 years, vegetation has been cleared from the upper portion of the slope to enhance viewing opportunities for visitors, birds have undermined the hill by burrowing into the slope, and storms that hit Kīlauea Point in 2020 and 2021 resulted in degradation of vegetative cover. Further erosion at the viewing area would result in continued undermining of the sidewalk and safety fencing that protects staff and visitors. Providing erosion control will minimize slope erosion and stabilize the visitor overlook.
Learn more about the Refuge below, or call Jennifer Waipa at (808) 635-0925.
New Insights into Hawaiʻi Humpback Whale Behavior and Ecology
A Simplified Interpretation by Jean Souza
The Hawaiian Archipelago is the largest breeding and calving area for humpback whales in the North Pacific. For decades since the international ban on whaling, the population of humpback whales in Hawaiʻi has increased steadily, until the huge "blob" of hot ocean water formed in the eastern North Pacific in 2015. This multi-media presentation presents insights into the immense and lingering impacts of the "blob" on the Hawaiʻi subpopulation, and on many recent Hawaiʻi-based humpback whale research findings.
Free Lecture: Tuesday, January 14, 2025, 5:00-6:30pm
Princeville Community Center and on Zoom.
Ka Pae ʻĀina O Hawaiʻi Nei
“Ka Pae ʻĀina O Hawaiʻi Nei” is a culturally centered educational program and a community created mosaic mural that is being developed through a collaboration with the Garden Island Arts Council.
The place-based inspired mural is being developed through a series of community workshops, in which volunteers will help to create an 80-foot-long by 4-foot-high mosaic mural.
The mural will depict the topography of the entire Hawaiian Archipelago, helping us tell the geographic and cultural story of these islands and atolls, how the High Hawaiian Islands fit within this long history, and how these protected lands and waters serve as a refuge for a wide variety of native Hawaiian wildlife species.
The finished mural will be installed on the retaining wall that begins outside the Visitor Center at Kīlauea Point NWR.
Celebrating our mōlī
Kīlauea Point NWR is honored to host two mōlī (Laysan albatross) nesting colonies. Together, with a team of dedicated volunteers, we provide a safe place for these majestic seabirds to nest, rest and thrive. This year, we are pleased to share that a record 105 mōlī chicks fledged from within the two colonies at Kīlauea Point NWR!
Click HERE to enjoy an inspirational video of a mōli chick fledging, captured by Hob Osterlund.
Hanalei NWR Viewpoint Now Open!
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in partnership with the State of Hawai‘i Department of Transportation Highways Division (HDOT), is pleased to welcome the community and visitors to the new Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Viewpoint site, which opened to the public on April 30, 2024.
The new viewpoint site is the primary location for the public to visit the Hanalei NWR, where the public can safely view the many sensitive endangered species and habitats in the valley from a distance. The site is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.
The viewpoint is a 5.4-acre parcel located along Kūhiō Highway in Princeville that includes two lookouts featuring views of the greater Hanalei Valley and Bay, Hanalei NWR, and Halele‘a Forest Reserve. The site also includes parking for 25 cars, short-term parking for a maximum of three small buses, interpretive displays, vault toilets, and native plantings that will provide residents and visitors with opportunities to learn about the natural and cultural history of the Hanalei Valley and Hanalei NWR.
New Predator-Resistant Fence for Kīlauea Point NWR is complete.
The Kīlauea Point NWR team has announced that construction of the fence is complete! This new 2.1 mile long fence will protect 168 acres and thousands of native birds nesting here from mammalian predators.
Click HERE to read a related article about the project on the USFWS website.
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