2. An Exceptionally Vulnerable Environment.

The same natural circumstances that have made Hawai`i such a paradise, now make the islands exceptionally vulnerable to new pest species. For millions of years, Hawai`i was isolated from the rest of the world by 2,000 miles of open ocean. Only the tiniest plants and animals survived the crossing of the ocean on the waves, in the winds, or on wings of birds. A species was able to colonize perhaps as seldom as once in 50,000 years! Those that did survive this incredible journey found a pleasant climate, fertile soils, few competitors, and fewer diseases or predators.

As a result of this gentle environment, many native species lost their natural defenses because they had no need to escape or protect themselves from predators. For example, most native plants have no poisonous saps or thorns, and several birds lost their ability to fly because they had no need to escape predators.

 

Today a new pest reaches Hawai`i once every 18 days on the average. Like other species, they too benefit from Hawai`i's lush environment. Free of the competitors and natural diseases that keep them in check in their own native environments, populations of these foreign pests sometimes explode in Hawai`i.