One species every 70,000 years! That's Open with plants and animals once colonized the Hawaiian Islands Countless millions of them ha...but only the most rugged pioneers-a salt-
resistant seed, an insect clinging to a raft of wood, a strong-winged bird-survived the long voyage across the
Pacific from their native continents. Of the hundreds of species that did make it to Hawaii,
only a few survived
the seclusion and harshness of the burning volcanic islands. It took time, but these barren new "worlds," risen
from the sea and born of fire, finally surrendered to the slow but persistent assault of life.
2 Of course, the story of the invasion of life is similar all across the globe. But what makes the Hawaii
story special is the incredible distance life had to travel to get there. Remote and alone in the heart of the
North Pacific, Hawaii is the most isolated island group on Earth... Yet, life did get to Hawaii, and it did so in
three ways: by wind, wings, and water.
3 Wind. Many of Hawaii's plants, spiders, and insects have origins in Asia, thanks to a torrent of thin
air called the jet stream, which roars across the upper atmosphere with hurricane force. Each January, the
castward-flowing jet stream makes a southerly meander over Asia. As the wind in the jet stream moves away
from Asia, it slows to a minimum of about 110 kph just over Hawaii. Are you getting the picture? Quite a
transport mechanism here! Now, picture this: A gale-force wind in
Asia strips a plant of its seeds and lifts a few spiders and insects off the
ground, making them airborne ... where they are then transported
eastward at hurricane force until the winds slow and the seeds,
spiders, and insects sprinkle down on the islands. The entire journey
can take just four hours!
4 Wings. Insects, seeds, and spiders (as well as other life forms)
can take alternate means of transport to Hawaii-such as hitching a
ride on a migrating or storm-driven bird. With a wingspan of over
two meters, the great frigate bird is a soaring wonder. Its powerful
wings can carry it effortlessly across the tropical Pacific. Now imagine
one of these gets caught in a hurricane. It soars with the wind until it
sights land in this case, Hawaii. Aliter longiornaviurests. Aseed
from a favorite berry it has eaten de Page 678d, intam a +
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