The Hawaii Channel - Rapture Returns From Research Cruise

Fish Swimming in Northwest Hawaiian Islands The collaborative effort involved scientists with federal, state, and private agencies who explored the uninhabited islands and mapped coral reefs.

The scientists pulled into Snug Harbor at Sand Island and began unloading the samples they collected from 11 islands, shoals and atolls covering 2,400 miles of ocean.

The scientists normally reached their destinations by dinghys offloaded from the Rapture.

"What we found is that the diversity and abundance of coral in the northwest Hawaiian Islands is comparable if not greater than in the main Hawaiian Islands," Jim Maragos of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service told KITV4 News.

Maragos said it is also good news that large predatory fish like sharks and jacks are abundant in the northwest Hawaiian Islands. "It tells us the eco-system is very healthy and can serve as a resevoir for larvae to repopulate fish populations in the main Hawaiian Islands," Maragos said.

Duck Swimming in Northwest Hawaiian Islands One of the northwest Hawaiian Islands is Laysan Island. It spans about 900 acres and has a lagoon in the middle of it.

The freshwater sources are important for species like the Laysan Duck.

"They are doing incredibly well," David Johnson of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said. "That bird is on the comeback right now."

Everyone KITV4 News talked to said the expedition was incredibly successful.

Previous Stories:

October 10, 1999: Counting Fish In Hawaii's Northwest Islands