They cover an area of 6,600 km2 (2,500 sq mi) on the leeward side of the main islands and the summits of Niʻihau and Kahoʻolawe.

), ʻōhiʻa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha), lonomea (Sapindus oahuensis), māmane (Sophora chrysophylla), loulu (Pritchardia spp.

Endemic plant species include hau heleʻula (Kokia cookei), uhiuhi (Caesalpinia kavaiensis), and Gouania spp.

[2] The forests' plant composition changed following the arrival of Polynesians, even excluding the deliberate introduction of non-native species.

Populations of loulu and ʻaʻaliʻi remain in diminished form, while only two Ka palupalu o Kanaloa specimens have ever been seen in the wild.