A short history of cattle and range management in Hawaii

Author:

Maly, Kepa, Wilcox, Bruce A.

Title:

A short history of cattle and range management in Hawaii

Periodical:

Rangelands

Year:

2000

Volume:

22

Pages:

21-23

Subject:

Cattle Forest ecology Land use Mauna Kea

Summary:

This is a short history of cattle and range management in Hawaii. It tells of how the introduction of cattle, (introduced by Capt. Vancouver), and other grazing livestock such as boars, goats, rams, and ewes, (introduced by Capt. Cook), significantly impacted the natural and cultural ecology of Hawaii due to the overgrazing and trampling of the livestock. Native dwellings and agricultural fields were also severely impacted by the livestock due to their consumption of hatched houses and the planted produce. This resulted in the building of stone walls in an effort to protect homes and gardens. The author also describes how the upland forests were stripped of sandalwood, how the free roaming cattle also impacted the remaining forests that were once covered by thick wood, the impact that the forest reduction had on the weather, and the drought that resulted from the devastation. The author also describes the collapse of the ahupuaa land management system, the redistribution of land control as part of the Great Mahele, the decimation of the indigenous population due to small pox, and the signing into law, by King David Kalakaua, the "Act for the Protection and Preservation of Woods and Forests", and the fall of cattle ranching in Hawaii.

Label:

Animals

URL:

http://cletus.uhh.hawaii.edu:2075/stable/4001486

Date:

October 2000

Collection:

Periodicals