Featured Alien: Cattle

Scientific Name: Bos taurus

How It Came To Hawai‘i :

In 1793 Captain George Vancouver gave Kamehameha I the first cattle in the Islands. Kamehameha imposed a ten-year kapu (restriction) to protect the animals, allowing them to breed and wander without restraint.

Impact Since Its Arrival:

Vancouver believed that cattle could be a new resource for Hawai‘i . But because the cattle were allowed to roam and become established in the wild, they seriously harmed native forests. They left the uplands to ravage gardens and farms in the villages below. Stonewalls were constructed and cactus barriers were planted to stop this menace.

Not all rock walls are heiau! Today, hikers in Hawai‘i who come across old rock walls often assume that they are discovering a heiau (temple), house site, or other ancient achaeological feature. More often than not, these structures are just cattle walls. In the 19th century residents constructed extensive rock walls to keep loose cattle from trampling through taro fields and house lots.

Previous | Next