Kawainui: Change Over Time

Kawainui is a large marsh near Kailua on Windward O‘ahu. Though it is now located a mile from the ocean, it was once part of the beach. What we see today is the result of changes caused by natural forces and human use that began with the first arrival of man. This change has accelerated in recent years.

Open bay

Thousands of years ago, before the arrival of the Polynesians, Kawainui was a large bay connected to the ocean. Evidence of this comes from deposits of sand, coral and fish bones found in the marsh.

Lagoon

Over time, a sand bar formed across the bay and created a lagoon. More than 1,000 years ago Hawaiians settled along the edges of this lagoon.

Fishpond

About 200 years ago, Hawaiians used Kawainui as a large inland fishpond. Streams carried fresh water to a pond over 400 acres in size that held many fish. Taro was planted in the streams and wetlands around the fishpond.

Marsh

As the Hawaiian population declined in the 19th century, the pond and taro fields were no longer maintained. Chinese farmers used the fields for rice, but abandoned their farms by 1920. Kawainui became a marsh. Today it is threatened by uncontrolled vegetation and by the growing urbanization at its edges. Without protection, the Kawainui wetlands, a home for endangered birds, will disappear.

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