Hawaii Invasive Species Partnerships

Introduced to Hawaii from Brazil in 1825, strawberry guava is an invasive species that many enjoy. Some people eat the fruit as a snack, use it to make jam, or use the wood for smoking meat, and more. However, like several non-native species, its potential damage may outweigh its utility. Strawberry guava has no natural enemies or competitors in Hawaii. It forms dense thickets replacing native Hawaiian plants, which also damages the watershed services that diverse forests provide. Its spread over thousands of acres is beyond the possibility of control by existing methods. These are just some of the reasons why there is a public conversation about the proposed introduction to Hawaii of a scale insect that is the natural population control of strawberry guava in Brazil. Learn more about strawberry guava and biocontrol and the facts and fiction about strawberry guava control. (PDFs)

About the problem of invasive species

What is an invasive species? An invasive species is an alien species (plant, animal, or microbe transported by humans to a location outside its native range) whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health (U.S. Presidential Executive Order 13112).

Hawaii is in the midst of a growing invasive species crisis affecting the islands' endangered plants and animals, overall environmental and human health, and the viability of its tourism- and agriculture-based economy.

Partnerships to meet Hawaii's invasive species challenge

Preventing and controlling invasive species is so important that several groups have formed in recent years to work on these issues on multiple levels:

Grassroots, island-based partnerships work to protect each island

A multi-agency partnership works on statewide issues at a management level

A cabinet-level council provides the framework for a comprehensive statewide program.