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{{Short description|Island in Hawaii}}
{{for|the genus of spiders of the same name|Nihoa (spider)}}
{{distinguish|text=[[wikt:nǐhǎo|Nihao]] or [[Ni‘ihau]]}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox islands
| name = Nihoa
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[[File:Hawaiianislandchain_USGS.png|thumb|upright=1.4|Map showing the location of Nihoa in the Hawaiian island chain]]
'''Nihoa''' ({{IPAc-en|n|iː|ˈ|h|oʊ|.|ə}}; {{lang-haw|Nīhoa}} {{IPA|haw|niːˈhowə|}} or {{lang-haw|Nihoa}} {{IPA|haw|niˈhowə|}}), also known as '''Bird Island''' or '''Moku Manu''', is the tallest of ten islands and atolls in the uninhabited [[Northwestern Hawaiian Islands]] (NWHI). The island is located at the southern end of the NWHI chain, {{convert|296|km|nmi|0|abbr=on}} southeast of [[Necker Island (Hawaii)|Necker Island]]. Nihoa is the closest NWHI in proximity to the eight main windward [[Hawaiian Islands]] at approximately {{convert|240|km|nmi|0|abbr=on}} northwest of the island of [[Kauai|Kaua{{okina}}i]]. The island has two peaks, {{convert|272|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} Miller's Peak in the west, and {{convert|259|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} Tanager Peak in the east. Nihoa's area is about {{convert|171|acres|km2|abbr=on}} and is surrounded by a {{convert|142000|acre|adj=on}} [[coral reef]]. Its jagged outline gives the island its name, {{lang|haw|Nīhoa}}, which is [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] for "
The island is home to 25 species of plants and several animals, making it the most diverse island in the entire NWHI. Endemic birds like the [[Nihoa finch]] and [[Nihoa millerbird]], and endemic plants like ''[[Pritchardia remota]]'' and ''[[Schiedea verticillata]]'' are found only on Nihoa. ''[[Amaranthus brownii]]'' was considered the rarest plant on Nihoa and has not been directly observed on the island since 1983, and is now considered to be extinct. The plant communities and rocky outcrops provide nesting and perching areas for 18 species of seabirds, such as [[red-footed boobies]] and [[brown noddies]], terns, shearwaters, and petrels. Prehistoric evidence indicates Native Hawaiians lived on or visited the island around AD 1000, but over time the location of Nihoa was mostly forgotten, with only an oral legend preserving its name. Captain [[James Colnett]] rediscovered the island in 1788, and [[Kaʻahumanu|Queen Kaʻahumanu]] visited it in 1822. It was made part of the [[Kingdom of Hawaii]] by [[Kamehameha IV|King Kamehameha IV]].
In 1909, Nihoa became part of the Hawaiian Islands Reservation, a federal wildlife refuge established by U.S.
==Geology
[[File:NASA Nihoa.jpg|thumb|left|Nihoa island]]
<!--[[File:Nihoa cliff.jpg|upright|thumb|Tanager Peak, looking east from Miller Peak]]-->
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Nihoa is part of the [[Hawaiian – Emperor seamount chain]] of volcanic islands, atolls, and seamounts starting from the island of [[Hawaii (island)|Hawai{{okina}}i]] in the southeast to the [[Aleutian Islands]] in the northwest. It is the youngest of ten islands in the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI), having formed 7.2 million years ago; the oldest, [[Kure Atoll]], formed 30 million years ago. Over the millennia, Nihoa has experienced significant [[erosion]]; along with Necker, French Frigate Shoals, and Gardner Pinnacles, Nihoa is one of only four islands in the NWHI that still has an exposed basalt rock substrate.<ref>{{cite web|author=Department of Forestry and Wildlife |year=2005 |url=http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dofaw/cwcs/files/NAAT%20final%20CWCS/Chapters/CHAPTER%206%20nwhi%20NAAT%20final%20!.pdf |title=Chapter 6: Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CWCS) |publisher=[[Hawai'i Department of Land and Natural Resources]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322164824/http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dofaw/cwcs/files/NAAT%20final%20CWCS/Chapters/CHAPTER%206%20nwhi%20NAAT%20final%20!.pdf |archive-date=March 22, 2012 }}</ref> Six valleys slant down from north to south, meeting at the south side of the island: West Valley, West Palm Valley, Miller Valley, Middle Valley, East Palm Valley, and East Valley.
The valleys slant towards Adam's bay on the south side, which also has sea cave.<ref name=USFWS>{{cite book |title=The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands: An Annotated Bibliography |year=1978 |publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R5g6AQAAIAAJ&dq=nihoa+geology&pg=RA2-PA17 |access-date=25 March 2021 |language=en}}</ref>
Among features on Nihoa are Dog's Head Peak ({{convert|358|ft|m|abbr=on|disp=or}}), named for its likeness, and Pinnacle Peak ({{convert|626|ft|m|abbr=on|disp=or}}), a [[Dike (geology)|volcanic dike]] created when less resilient rock was eroded away and harder rock was open to the elements. The only flat area on the island is Albatross Plateau, just below Miller's Peak. The Devil's Slide is a narrow cleft descending {{convert|700|ft|m|-1|}} irrespective of the surrounding elevation. Extending northward from Albatross Plateau, it ends at the vertical cliffs with a {{convert|190|ft|m|-1|adj=on}} drop straight down to the ocean below. In this chasm, rare [[fern]]s grow, along with several [[Endemism|endemic]] species, including a [[Thaumatogryllus conanti|giant cricket]].<ref name="Rauzon_2001">{{harvnb|Rauzon|2001}}.</ref>
The island is about 1371 meters long going from east to west, and
==Ecology==
[[File:Millerbird2.jpg|thumb|Nihoa millerbird]]
[[File:Nihoa Pritchardia remota.jpg|thumb|Nihoan fan palms]]
Nihoa's inaccessibility and lack of major [[guano]] deposits made the island unattractive to humans, helping to preserve its [[Endemism|endemic]] species from extinction. Because of Nihoa's small size, most of its endemic organisms are [[endangered species|endangered]], as one single disaster, such as an island-wide fire or an introduction of [[invasive species]], could wipe out the whole population. One such invasive species is the [[Schistocerca nitens|gray bird grasshopper]], ''Schistocerca nitens''; from the period between 1999 and 2003, grasshoppers devastated much of the vegetation on the island and posed a real threat to the continued health of plants on Nihoa.<ref name="Litts">{{harvnb|Liittschwager|Middleton|2005|p=94}}</ref> The following year, the numbers decreased and the vegetation became lush again. The grasshoppers probably came to Nihoa by way of wind from [[Kauai]].
The north side of the island's cliffs are mostly bare, but the sloping valleys are covered with a variety of grasses and shrubs.<
There is also a variety of scrubs and bushes on the island slopes, such as ''Chenopodium sandwicheum'' and ilima bushes (''[[Sida fallax]]'').<
Unique species include:
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* ''[[Eupelmus nihoaensis]]'', a [[wasp]]
* ''[[Hylaeus perkinsianus]],'' Perkin's yellow-faced bee
{{further|Flora of Nihoa}}
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Nihoa, along with [[Necker Island (Northwestern Hawaiian Islands)|Necker Island]] to the northwest, is among the most northern, isolated, smallest and driest of the high volcanic Hawaiian islands, and receives the lowest dust and [[tephra]] input. All of these features were found to strongly predict [[deforestation]] among the [[Pacific Islands]]. The abandonment of Nihoa may be tied to deforestation although this has not been proven and small groves of trees were noted in the major drainage valleys during survey work conducted in 1928.<ref name="Emory28" />
Artifacts recorded on the island represent a unique material culture demonstrating restraint in the utilization of wood. A number of artifact types such as bowls and human figures called ''ki'i'' that elsewhere in the Hawaiian chain would have been made out of wood were instead carved from stone, a lengthy and labor
The heiau on Nihoa and [[Necker Island (Hawaii)|Necker Islands]] are unique in the Hawaiian chain representing a raised pavement of basalt stones with upright stones placed across this pavement often near the edges<ref name="Emory28" /> as opposed to the form common to other islands in the chain represented by a high stacked stone wall enclosing a central space. This difference in form represents an earlier iteration of Hawaiian monumental architecture that offers a unique perspective on cultural norms prior to the abandonment of Nihoa.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kirch |first=Patrick Vinton |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/11841243 |title=Feathered gods and fishhooks: an introduction to Hawaiian archaeology and prehistory |date=1985 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=0-8248-0981-5 |location=Honolulu |oclc=11841243}}</ref> Thanks to this difference in form, scholars often use the term '[[marae]]' as opposed to 'heiau' in reference to these structures and some scholars argue that the shift in form represents a shift in ritual practice in Hawaii.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kirch |first=Patrick Vinton |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1099790638 |title=Heiau, ʻaina, lani : the Hawaiian temple system in ancient Kahikinui and Kaupō, Maui |date=2019 |others=C. L. N. Ruggles, Andrew B. Smith |isbn=978-0-8248-7942-6 |location=Honolulu |oclc=1099790638}}</ref>
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The first Westerner to discover Nihoa was Captain [[James Colnett]] of the ''Prince of Wales'', on March 21, 1788. Due to Colnett's lengthy absence from England, including his imprisonment by the Spanish for his part in the [[Nootka Sound Incident]], the discovery was once widely accredited to Captain [[William Douglas (sea captain)|William Douglas]] of the ''Iphigenia'', who sighted Nihoa almost a year later.<ref name="Rauzon_2001_8">{{harvnb|Rauzon|2001|p=8}}.</ref>
The abandoned settlements seen by the early explorers caused Nihoa and Necker islands, to be called the 'mystery islands'.<ref name=Archaeology/> However, this term is used more generally to refer to any island in the Pacific that was similarly abandoned prior to European contact.
By the end of the 18th century, Nihoa had been forgotten by most Hawaiians. In 1822, [[Ka'ahumanu|Queen Ka{{okina}}ahumanu]] and her husband [[Kaumualii|King Kaumuali{{okina}}i]] traveled with Captain William Sumner to find Nihoa, as her generation had only known the island through songs and [[Hawaiian mythology|myths]].<ref name="Tava_1998_102103" /> Later, King [[Kamehameha IV]] sailed there to officially annex the island as part of the [[Kingdom of Hawaii|Kingdom of Hawai{{okina}}i]]. Finally, in 1885, [[Liliuokalani|Princess Liliuokalani]] made a pilgrimage to Nihoa with her escorts, but their luncheon was cut short when one of the party ignited a [[wildfire]] by accident. The group tried to flee the island, but the rising [[tide]]s made it difficult and several boats were flooded, destroying some of the photographs taken.<ref name="Rauzon_2001_12">{{harvnb|Rauzon|2001|p=12}}.</ref> On this visit a carved basalt bowl was found and taken back to the main islands by the Queen.<ref name=Archaeology/>
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==Tanager expedition==
[[File:Nihoa TanagerPeak NOAA.jpg|thumb|Tanager peak]]
During 1923-4 the Tanager expedition was a noted scientific exploration of Nihoa island.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nihoa Island - Hawaiian Islands |url=https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Hawaiian_Islands/about/Nihoa.html |website=www.fws.gov |publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |access-date=25 March 2021}}</ref> This resulted in various biological and archeological discoveries.<ref name="Emory">Emory 1928</ref><ref name="Rauzon 2001, p.18">Rauzon 2001, p.18</ref>
The Tanager expedition conducted the first archeological survey of the island.<ref name=USFWS/> Evidence of an ancient settlement on Nihoa was discovered, along with platforms, terraces, and human remains.<ref name="Emory">Emory 1928</ref>
Noted events include finding a specimen of ''[[Amaranthus brownii]]'' and the discovery of the [[Nihoa millerbird]] which was formally named ''Acrocephalus familiaris kingi'',<ref
On this expedition, several hundred Loulu fan palms were counted on the island.<ref name=USFWS/> Twenty other flowering plants were also noted at this time.<
Examples of exploration work:<
*Survey map of island
*Bird life
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* {{cite book| last = Juvik| first = Sonia P.|author2=James O. Juvik |author3=Thomas R. Paradise | title = Atlas of Hawaii| publisher = University of Hawaii Press| year = 1998| isbn = 978-0-8248-2125-8 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kirch |first= Patrick Vinton |title=Feathered Gods and Fishhooks: An Introduction to Hawaiian Archaeology and Prehistory |author-link=Patrick Vinton Kirch |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=9780824819385|year=1985 }}
* {{cite journal |last=Lebo |first=Susan A. |author2=Kevin T.M. Johnson |year=2007 |title=Geochemical sourcing of rock specimens and stone artifacts from Nihoa and Necker Islands,
* {{cite journal |last=Olson |first=Storrs L. |year=1996 |title=History and ornithological journals of the ''Tanager'' Expedition of 1923 to the northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Johnston and Wake islands |journal=Atoll Research Bulletin |volume=433 |issue=433 |pages=1–210 |url=http://si-pddr.si.edu/jspui/handle/10088/5880|publisher=[[National Museum of Natural History]]|doi=10.5479/si.00775630.433.1 }}
* {{cite journal |last=Palmer |first=H. S. |year=1927 |title=Geology of Kaula, Nihoa, Necker and Gardner Islands, and French Frigate Shoals |journal=Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin |volume=35 |series=Tanager Expedition Publication Number 4 }}
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