In 2012, Robert Hauff and other researchers noticed something unusual about the ohia trees they were studying in Puna. The canopy of the trees seemed to be dying back at an alarming rate. Residents had also been reporting similar observations in the area.

It would be several more years until scientists were able to identify and put a name to the cause: Rapid Ohia Death, a disease caused by a type of fungus that infects the trees via open wounds. It inhibits the trees’ ability to circulate water, leading to their death over the course of just months.

Now, over a decade later, Hauff, who is the state protection forester with the Department of Land and Natural Resources, said efforts are ongoing to better understand and address ROD. While it has also been detected in different forms on other islands, it is most prevalent on the Big Island where it is estimated to have killed over 1 million ohia trees and counting.

“We are continuing to see areas highly impacted by Rapid Ohia Death, a couple of areas that come to mind are Laupahoehoe and Ka‘u,” Hauff said. “The amount of tree mortality that we see there with our monitoring is really heartbreaking to see some of our nicest ohia forests in the state being impacted in this way.”

DLNR, in partnership with other agencies and organizations, recently published a new ROD strategic response plan, which provides an overview of what has been learned about the disease, current tools to manage it, and areas in need of additional research to be able to better protect the trees.

Endemic to Hawaii, meaning they are not naturally found anywhere else on Earth, ohia trees are essential to Hawaiian ecosystems, Hauff said.

“It’s a big concern for our forests on Hawaii Island. It’s the backbone of our native forests, habitat for our endangered forest birds,” he said, adding that the trees also play a role in maintaining healthy watersheds and are culturally important to Native Hawaiians.

Ryan Perroy is a professor at the University of Hawaii at Hilo who is also the director of the university’s spatial data analysis research lab and has been studying ROD using drones and satellite imagery.

“What my group has been focused on is trying to map out the mortality,” he said. “Early on, we were trying to be able to identify new outbreaks, and that’s certainly also still an important thing. And then once there is mortality happening, we’re trying to characterize, basically, the spatio-temporal trends.”

The lab recently has received a $2.25 million grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to help fund this work through 2028.

“We’ve learned a lot so far, and then I think we’ve got some management tools under our belt that we didn’t before, but there are still some unanswered questions,” he said. “So, as part of that, trying to understand those additional questions, that’s where some of these federal funds have come in.”

Among the discoveries that researchers like Perroy have contributed to is the role that animals, specifically hoofed ungulates like pigs, play in spreading ROD. He said his lab has been able to use its imagery to compare ohia forests where these animals were present with fenced areas where they were not, and noticed a dramatic difference.

“Where the animals are there, or if the animals break into a fence line where they hadn’t been before, you see much higher mortality,” he said.

While he said more research needs to be done, the higher mortality is likely due, at least in part, to the animals wounding the trees and opening them up to infection from ROD.

J.B. Friday, extension forester for the University of Hawaii at Manoa, has also been studying ROD since the early days of its detection on the island. In addition to identifying the cause of the disease and better understanding how it spreads, he said another helpful discovery is that some trees seem to be resistant to the fungus.

“I think we definitely can say there is resistance to ROD in the natural ohia populations,” he said. “What we don’t know — and it’s going to be a few years more before we start finding out — is if it can be inherited. If a mother tree is resistant, do the seedlings, the seeds taken from that tree grow into resistant trees too, or not? Some things get passed down more than others. We have to do that kind of work still, but there’s resistance out there that we can work with, so that’s encouraging.”

The state recently awarded $82,999 to the Hilo-based nonprofit Akaka Foundation for Tropical Forests to continue work on developing disease-resistant ohia.

In addition to ungulates, beetles — specifically invasive ambrosia beetles — have also been found to facilitate the spread of ROD, according to Kylle Roy, a forest entomologist with the U.S. Forest Service. When these beetles burrow into infected ohia trees, they release a sawdust-like substance, called frass, containing the ROD fungus that can then be spread to other trees.

In response, she has been working on deploying a beetle repellent that recently hit the market in Hawaii. Called Specialized Pheromone and Lure Application Technology Verbenone, or SPLAT Verb for short, it is essentially a biodegradable paste that can be applied to trees and deter beetles from burrowing there.

She said it is especially valuable in preventing a ROD outbreak in the early stages.

“When you have a new ROD outbreak, you can treat a ROD tree and then also treat healthy trees around it to prevent the spread of ROD from the ROD tree to the healthy trees,” she said.

Roy was also involved in the development of the ROD strategic response plan and, while she is excited about the potential of SPLAT Verb to stem the spread of ROD, she agrees with other researchers that more tools and resources are needed, especially when it comes to detecting the presence of the fungus.

“There’s really a need for early detection, because by the time we can see that a tree has ROD, it’s too late to try to treat it with a fungicide or something,” she said.

She plans to keep working on the issue along with other researchers like Hauff, Perroy and Friday from around the island, as well as the state, nation and globe who share the common goal of protecting ohia forests.

“The vision is for just healthy, functioning forests and honeycreepers singing, just like the way it should be,” said Perroy, the UH Hilo researcher. “That’s really what we’re all trying to get to.”

Email Grace Inez Adams at grace.adams@hawaiitribune-herald.com.

Remember that 250 years ago, nobody had ever heard of Idaho, and the name was mostly made up by an entrepreneur who impressed the federal government with an exaggeration about his knowledge of indigenous culture.  But a large number of people who live in the state can trace ancestry to the colonial era, and I believe most Americans still have a love of country, even if some polls give an indication they may not quite know how to express it.

I Was at the Heart of the Bicentennial

Looking back 50 years, I was in Washington, D.C. at the beginning of July.  Washington also didn’t exist in 1776.  My memory is that its reputation as a hot, sticky swamp was well earned.  I traveled there with a history club from school.  On a rattling old yellow bus.  The city was packed, and many of the people on the streets were foreign tourists.  It told me that despite the anti-Americanism common on streets elsewhere around the world, we were still fascinating others.

We’re Still One Nation

1976 was a unifying experience and followed a very turbulent previous 15 years.  Some people fear the 250^th jubilee won’t bring us together.  Look, those rent-a-mobs you see on TV and online are actually a small fraction of America.  Picnics in the park don’t make news.  Riots and tear gas get the attention of newsrooms.  There are still far more picnics.

The recent Memorial Day commemorations were reverential.  Independence Day 2026 is going to be a party.  The media focus will be on President Trump and a festival far away.  Meanwhile, across Idaho, grills will be fired up, and we’ll be proud to be Americans.

Here Are Rappers Who Are Still Supporting Donald Trump

Six states — California, Iowa, Montana, New Jersey, South Dakota and New Mexico — hold elections on Tuesday. Most of the attention is on California and Iowa, where there are competitive primaries for governor. In both states, the Democratic Party also sees a road map to control of Congress in the fall.

In California’s unique primary system, voters send the top two vote-getters to November’s general election, regardless of candidates’ political parties. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is term limited, and California voters will also pick who should move on to the general election in five new Democratic-leaning congressional districts.

In Iowa, Democratic voters will choose a candidate in a key Senate race — the Republican in the race is already the de facto nominee. In order to win a majority in the Senate, Democrats must pick up four seats, forcing the party to win in Republican-leaning states like Iowa. For governor, the race is the first good chance Democrats have to win the office in years, but Republicans still need to select their nominee.

Here are key races to follow:

Or skip to specific races:

California governor | California U.S. House | Iowa governor | Iowa U.S. Senate | New Jersey and Montana

You can also check out June 2 voter resources from the NPR network.

California decides top two gubernatorial contenders

It’s been a chaotic scramble to pick the next leader of the country’s largest state. After three prominent Democrats — former Vice President Kamala Harris, Sen. Alex Padilla and state Attorney General Rob Bonta — decided not to run, Democratic voters haven’t had a clear front-runner for the first time in decades. Voters have more than 60 candidates to choose from, but only a fraction of those are considered serious contenders. Only the top two vote-getters will move on to the general election in November.

California Democratic gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra hugs a supporter at the Long Beach Arena on May 31 in Long Beach, Calif.

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The race got a shakeup when former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, the presumed favorite, dropped out of the race after he was accused of sexual misconduct by several women. Most recently, polls show the contest could be between two Democrats — the Health and Human Services secretary under former President Joe Biden, Xavier Becerra, and billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer.

Before Becerra was appointed to Biden’s Cabinet, he served 12 terms in Congress and was elected as the California attorney general in 2016. He’s considered by many as the candidate with the strongest political background. Becerra’s pitch is that he is a proven leader who can hold his own and protect California from President Trump.

Steyer has forked over more than $213 million of his own fortune on the race and is also financially backed by Our Revolution, a group aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Steyer’s platform is centered on taking a stand against special-interest groups in politics.

Polling just a few points behind Becerra and Steyer is Republican Steve Hilton. The former Fox News host was endorsed by President Trump in April, after which Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, another Republican in the race, quickly dropped in the polls. Hilton’s platform focuses on increasing affordable housing supply for first-time homebuyers, bolstering tech industries and reviving California’s film industry.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer speaks with students during a Get the Youth Vote with Bruin Democrats event at UCLA’s campus on June 1 in Los Angeles, Calif.

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The outcome of California’s new congressional districts

In response to Texas redrawing its congressional lines to create five Republican-leaning districts at the behest of President Trump, Californians approved Proposition 50 in November last year. The measure temporarily sidestepped the independent redistricting commission tasked with drawing nonpartisan influenced congressional boundaries, in favor of politically gerrymandered districts. That allowed state Democrats to redraw their map so five previously Republican-held districts now lean Democratic.

This has left those Republican incumbents figuring out their political futures. Rep. Ken Calvert, the longest-serving Republican from California, and Rep. Young Kim are running in the same district, for example, in a race that’s gotten quite heated.

Then there’s Rep. Kevin Kiley. After being drawn into a much more Democratic-leaning district, he decided to run in a new seat and announced he was leaving the Republican Party and running as an independent instead, though Kiley said would still caucus with the Republicans.

Because of California’s primary system, some of these more competitive seats are creating competitive primaries between Democrats, allowing primary voters to signal to the party what kinds of candidates speak to them most in places that have the most to lose — and gain.

Iowa’s GOP gubernatorial primary

Iowa Republican voters could decide the party’s nominee for governor in the state’s first open race for the office since 2011, as sitting Gov. Kim Reynolds opted not to run for reelection.

With five Republicans on Tuesday’s ballot, Rep. Randy Feenstra is the only one endorsed by Trump. The race will test whether Trump’s endorsement holds weight in a state where his approval rating has slipped over the economy and the war in Iran. Feenstra’s lead may be declining, as one recent poll shows political newcomer and Iowa businessman Zach Lahn could have a shot at winning the GOP primary.

There is a good chance, though, that Iowans won’t know the outcome of the race on Tuesday because a candidate must secure 35% of the vote to win outright. If no one clears that threshold, the nominee will be decided at a Republican convention where delegates — not primary voters — make the final choice.

But the Republican-backed candidate isn’t a shoo-in come November. Cook Political Report categorizes the governor’s race as a toss-up with a slight Republican advantage. Whatever Republican wins on Tuesday will face unopposed Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand in the general election. Sand is popular among voters and has, so far, outraised any other candidate for governor.

Democrats look to flip Iowa Senate seat

Democratic voters in Iowa will pick which candidate they think has the best shot at beating the Republican nominee for Senate, expected to be Trump-endorsed Rep. Ashley Hinson, on Tuesday. This is a seat that Democrats believe they have a shot at flipping come November. It’s part of a larger strategy of expanding their map — and winning in states currently held by Republican senators — if they want a chance to retake the Senate majority.

Iowa Democrats have a choice between state Rep. Josh Turek and state Sen. Zach Wahls. Both candidates are courting different Iowa voters, though. Turek is vying for the independent-leaning vote, while Wahls is hoping to gain the support from committed Democrats. Turek flipped a state House district held by a Republican, while Wahls represents a Senate district that is solidly blue. Both argue they are the candidate who has the right message to win in November.

And with three competitive congressional races on the ballot, some Democrats in the state are feeling like the road to a Democratic majority in Congress runs through Iowa.

Looking beyond Tuesday

New Jersey and Montana also have competitive races that could decide which party has control of Congress.

In New Jersey, all eyes are on Congressional District 7. Four Democrats are hoping to oust Republican Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. The sitting congressman has been notably absent from Washington for weeks due to what Kean cites as unspecified medical issues. He has missed more than 100 House votes since his last recorded vote on March 5.

Two races in Montana may be more competitive than originally expected with the last-minute announcements — shortly before the filing deadline — by Republicans, Sen. Steve Daines and Rep. Ryan Zinke, that neither would seek reelection.

While an open Senate seat does not make Montana, which has long been considered a Republican stronghold, necessarily competitive for Democrats, an independent candidate is outraising candidates in both major parties. Seth Bodnar, Iraq war veteran and former president of the University of Montana, is hoping voters will send him instead, mostly on the message that he won’t work for either party and is focused on changing the direction America is heading. In Bodnar’s case, he has enough voter signatures to land himself on the November ballot, but the Montana Secretary of State’s Office hasn’t yet certified those signatures.

Democrats are working to flip Montana’s 1st Congressional District as well. When Zinke announced he was retiring from Congress, it was seen as an opening for Democrats to compete. Now, four Democrats are angling for the open seat, including front-runner Sam Forstag, a smokejumper who is endorsed by popular progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

June 2 voter resources from the NPR Network

California | Iowa | Montana | New Jersey | New Mexico | South Dakota