National Wildlife Refuge | Hawaii
Beach/Pond Clean-up
Saturday November 23, 2019, Rotary Club of Maui’s monthly community project was to clean up a small area of this beautiful wildlife refuge. The club volunteers were guided by 2 park officials and together we collected several large garbage bags of trash. Many items were blown off the beds of pick up trucks such as cooler lids, plastic storage container lids, bottles, old tires and even carpet. It was a good day for this project as the area is normally underwater but the rains had not yet arrived to filled the dry ponds. After the group enjoyed shaved ice at nearby Ululani’s Shave Ice on S. Kihei Road. This was a very rewarding project, being outdoors with a lovely group, knowing we’re helping to take care of the land and animals for future generations. Please join us again this year, we’ll post the event here on our website.
Established in 1992, Keālia Pond National Wildlife Refuge encompasses approximately 700 acres and is one of the few natural wetlands remaining in the Hawaiian Islands. Located along the south-central coast of the island of Maui, between the towns of Kīhei and Mā‘alaea, it is a natural basin for a 56-square mile watershed from the West Maui Mountains.
The Keālia Coastal Boardwalk is a beautiful tranquil walkway and bird sanctuary, beside Maalaea Bay on the south edge of Maui's central valley. A walk on the boardwalk takes you through ancient wetlands where you can watch two of Hawaii's native and endangered waterbirds - the Hawaiian coot and Hawaiian stilt. Across the highway you can see Keālia Pond where waterfowl from Asia and North America come for rest and warmer climate, including northern shoveler and northern pintail. The Pacific golden plover migrates from Alaska, and other birds that come for the winter are the wandering tattler and ruddy turnstone.