Kaʻula

Kaokinaula Island, also called Kaokinaula Rock, is a small, crescent-shaped offshore islet in the Hawaiian Islands. It is located 23 miles west-southwest of Kawaihoa Point on Niokinaihau, and about 150 nautical miles west of Honolulu. The island is actually the very top of a volcanic tuff cone that rests on top of a larger, submerged shield volcano. At its highest point, the island reaches a height of 548 feet (167 meters). [ [http://www.volcanolive.com/kaula.html Kaula Volcano] John Seach, Volcano Live]

Kaokinaula is uninhabited but fishermen and scuba divers frequently visit the island. Five fathom pinnacle, three miles west-northwest of Kaokinaula, is also a noted dive spot.

The ocean has carved large sea cliffs on the sides of the island. There is a large cave on the northwest side of the island called Kahalauaola (Shark Cave) [ [http://atsea.nmfs.hawaii.edu/islands/kaula.htm Kaokinaula Island] NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell, Student Connection] .

A lighthouse was completed on the island in 1932 by the former United States Lighthouse Service. It remained in operation through 1947.

The island has been used as a target range by the U.S. Navy since at least 1952. Inert ordnance is currently used, although live explosive ordnance has been used in the past. There is a risk of unexploded ordnance on the island. Permission from the U.S. Navy is required to land on the island.

In 1978, over the objection of the U.S. Navy, the state of Hawaii claimed ownership of Kaokinaula and named the island a State Seabird Sanctuary. A final determination of ownership has not yet been made, and the Navy still uses the southeast point of the island as a target range in spite of the island's population of around 50,000 birds and native plant species, and the cultural and historical significance of the island to Native Hawaiians.

The United States Census Bureau defines Kaokinaula as Census Tract 411 of Kauaokinai County, Hawaiokinai. The 2000 census showed that the uninhabited island had a land area of 0.64 km² (0.247 square miles, or 158.2 acres). [ [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DTTable?_bm=y&-show_geoid=Y&-tree_id=4001&-_showChild=Y&-context=dt&-errMsg=&-all_geo_types=N&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_P001&-redoLog=false&-transpose=N&-search_map_config=|b=50|l=en|t=4001|zf=0.0|ms=sel_00dec|dw=0.32574415146711605|dh=0.22784596312794334|dt=gov.census.aff.domain.map.EnglishMapExtent|if=gif|cx=-160.54887078557877|cy=21.657999272138042|zl=5|pz=5|bo=318:317:316:314:313:323:319|bl=362:393:358:357:356:355:354|ft=350:349:335:389:388:332:331|fl=381:403:204:380:369:379:368|g=01000US&-PANEL_ID=p_dt_geo_map&-_lang=en&-geo_id=14000US15007041100&-CONTEXT=dt&-format=&-search_results=01000US&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U Census Tract 411, Kauaokinai County] United States Census Bureau] Because of erosion, the island is slowly shrinking.

External links

* [http://www.hawaiioirc.org/OIRC-ISLETS-Niihau/OIRC-ISLETS-Niihau-Kaula.htm Offshore Islet Restoration Committee, Kaula]
* [http://www.janeresture.com/kaula/ Kaokinaula Island]
* [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/19380_OAHU_TO_NIIHAU.pngNautical Chart Containing Kaokinaula Island]

References