Chapter 17 Hawaii and the Pacific Islands

Hawaii is a part of an archipelago which is a chain of islands. It has submerged volcanoes that are extended to about 3600 miles west. The Hawaiian archipelago consists of eight inhabited islands that extend southeast to northwest. Over several years, “Hawaii has created a unique biogeography. Prior to the arrival of human beings, more than 95 percent of all plant and animal species on the islands were endemic- that is, found nowhere else on earth. Among the best-known endemic species is the Hawaiian or nene goose” (Shelley 327). The nene goose can sometimes be mistaken as the Canadian goose but it is much smaller and adaptive to the rugged volcano areas.

Nene Goose

Just like Hawaii, Guam is a part of an archipelago. The archipelago is known as the Marianas Island and also like Hawaii; Guam has a couple of endemic species as well. Such as the Guam Rail, the Guam Broadbill, the Guam fly catcher, the yellow-crowned Butterfly fish, katydid, raspy cricket, a flat bark beetle, a plant bug and so much more.

Guam Fly Catcher

Guam being isolated much like Hawaii has to go through adaptive radiation where both islands have to adapt to a “mechanism of evolution in isolated areas that occurs in response to otherwise unfilled ecological niches” (Shelley 327). This adaptive radiation occurs mainly with the species as they adjust to those ecological niches that are far more different than plants and animals from other places in the world.