August 2021—Supporting the delicate, sacred reproductive cycle of corals is vital to their regeneration and continued survival. For the fourth consecutive year, our Kahalu‘u Bay Education Center team worked with the County of Hawai‘i to close Kahalu‘u Beach Park to the public during a critical cauliflower coral spawning period. Ancestral knowledge and the kaulana mahina (Hawaiian lunar calendar) tell us that cauliflower corals in Kahalu‘u Bay spawn shortly after the Kulu and Lāʻaukūkahi moons set in the months of Welo and Ikiiki, and this year the County closed the park for an entire week to give the coral gametes ample time to settle with minimal disruption. And we’ve started a movement: based on the past success of these closures at Kahalu‘u, the State of Hawai‘i also closed Waiālea Bay for two consecutive mornings this year to reduce stress on cauliflower corals spawning there.

August 2021—Kahalu‘u Bay’s coral reef and its vibrant inhabitants continue to educate us and the passionate community stewards dedicated to protecting them. On behalf of Kahalu‘u Bay, we invite new and longtime residents interested in protecting and deepening their relationship with Hawaiʻi’s reef ecosystems to join our ReefTeach program! By helping to educate beachgoers about coral reef health and how to respectfully engage with these fragile ecosystems we become better learners and ʻāina advocates ourselves. Community members of all ages are invited to become ReefTeachers; we provide training and participants set their own schedules. Email Kathleen Clark or call 808-887-6411 for more information or to sign up for an orientation.