by Shawn Wells

Created on: August 09, 2011   Last Updated: August 11, 2011

Hawaii is one of the most beautiful natural environments on Earth. Situated in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the Hawaiian archipelago’s warm, tropical environment is host to hundreds of different species. It is also home to a large, and growing, number of endangered animal species, including some of the rarest on Earth. These are only a few of the

endangered animals on that list. 

Mammals:

The Hawaiian Monk Seal. There are only two species of Monk Seal in the world. The Hawaiian Monk Seal lives in the leeward chain of the Hawaiian islands. The Monk Seal eats eels, small octopi, and reef fish.

The Hawaiian Hoary Bat. This is perhaps the most endangered bat in the world. It is very small, averaging from three to four inches tall with a wingspan of only six or seven inches. As the islands in the Hawaiian archipelago became more developed, the forests that are the Hoary Bat’s natural habitat were severely reduced.

Turtles:

The Green Sea Turtle. The Green Sea Turtle is the largest of all the hard- shelled sea turtles. Adult green turtles are unique among sea turtles because they only eat plants. They are endangered in all of their habitats around the world. This turtle, like many others, has been hunted by mankind for its shell and its meat to the point of being endangered worldwide.

The Hawksbill Sea Turtle. This small to medium-sized marine turtle has a distinctive hawk-like beak and an elongated oval shell. It can grow up to three feet in length. 

The Leatherback Sea Turtle. This is the largest of all sea turtles, growing up to eight feet in length. Since 1980, estimated population levels have dropped by half, to where there are now only about 40,000 nesting females worldwide.

Birds:

The Hawaiian Creeper. This is a very small bird, only about eleven centimeters in height. In the early 1980s, the population was estimated at between 12,000 and 13,000. Today, those numbers are even fewer.

The Hawaiian Crow. This bird is now extinct in the wild. There are approximately fifty of them left, in captivity.

The Hawaiian Duck. Also known as the Kaloa, this bird eats insects, rice, and algae. In the 1920s, the government allowed people to bag up to 25 Kaloas a day.

The Laysan Duck. This breed of duck is only found on Laysan Island. It feeds on insect larvae and flies. In recent years, it has almost gone extinct due to

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