The Pana'ewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens is the only one of its kind in the nation. Along with the usual zoo inhabitants like monkeys and sloths, the zoo boasts several native Hawaiian animals like the nene.
"Back in the forties, we were down to probably about 40 birds left and now we're at about two thousand now," says Terry Moniz, Zoo education specialist
Moniz speaks with pride when he talks about the zoo and the animals there. One that is a virtual pet is this Hawaiian hawk or 'Io.
"They attempted, my understanding is, they attempted to release him a few times and he came right back," he says. "Kupono was probably found as a nestling and hand-reared, it was confiscated and turned over to the zoo. He's about 11 years old now and as many of us know the I'o is considered to be taken off the endangered species list."
Or how about this guy - the Pueo.
"Most of us are more familiar with the barn owl which is nocturnal, a night species, normally white chested, comes out about dusk. The Pueo is a little less common, it is endemic to the islands. We normally found the pueo in the mauka areas hunting in the pasture land and the like for rodents. They've adapted pretty well," says Moniz.
And the Pueo has no problem maintaining eye contact. There are Aardvarks and exotic frogs. There are beautiful trees and rare Binturongs. But the biggest hit at the zoo?
"I think probably the biggest hit here at the zoo is "Namaste", our white Bengal tiger which was given to us over ten years ago," says Moniz.
"Namaste" was given to the zoo by Vegas illusionist Dirk Arthur when the tiger was just a cub. Ten years later, he returned for a visit and Moniz says the tiger recognized Arthur immediately. The *free* zoo is run by Hawaii county but Moniz says without the help of dozens of volunteers, it wouldn't be the prize exhibition that it is.
Just last year, the Pana'ewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens had 170,000 visitors. Click HERE for more information.
