The Natural History of Necker Island, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

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ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN NO. 206

THE NATURAL HISTORY OF NECKER ISLAND, NORTHWESTERN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

by Roger B. Clapp and Eugene Kridler

Issued

by

THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION with the assistance of

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Washington, D. C., U.S.A.

May 1977

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF FIGURES

...

^2.2.

. .

LIST OF TABLES

... iii

LIST OF APPENDIX TABLES a . . . {V

INTRODUCTION

...

¹

DESCRIPTION

...

⁴

GEOLOGY

...

¹¹

HISTORY

...

^{1 2}

VEGETATION

...

²⁵

...

TERRESTRIAL VERTEBRATES 3 1

...

Birds 3 1

Species Accounts

...

^{3 5}

...

Diomedea nigripes

3 6

Diomedea inmn*tabiZis ...

³⁸

BuZweria buZwerii ...

⁴²

...

Puffinus pacificus

44

puffinus n a t i v i t a t i s ...

⁴⁶

...

Oceanodroma tristrami

46

...

Phaethon rubricauda

46

&la dactylatra ...

⁴⁸

&Za Zeucogaster ...

^{5 1}

&Za suZa ...

^{5 3}

Fregata minor ...

⁵⁶

...

PZuv&Zis dominie a

₅₉

...

m e n i u s t a h i t i e n s i s

60

...

HeterosceZus incanus

6 1

...

Armaria interppes

62

CaZidris aZba ...

⁶³

...

Lams gzaucescens

63

Sterna Zunata ...

⁶³

S t e m fusca ta ...

⁶⁶

...

ProceZsterna ceruZea

69

Anous stoZ iclus ...

^{7 2}

...

Anous tenuipostris

7 5

Gygis aZb a ...

⁷⁷

...

M h s pozygZottos

7 9

...

Mammals 80

...

~ ~ n a c h u s schauinsZand{

8 0

...

Reptiles 8 1

Chezonia mydas ...

^{8 2}

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

...

^{8 3}

LITERATURE CITED

...

^{8 5}

APPENDIX TABLES

...

⁹²

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LIST OF FIGURES

1. The Hawaiian I s l a n d s .

2. Map of Necker I s l a n d . A f t e r Judd ( i n Palmer, 1927) and E l s c h n e r (1915). Names i n b r a c k e t s a r e t h o s e used by E l s c h n e r ; t h e o t h e r s a r e t h o s e used by t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n and subsequent v i s i t o r s . 5 3 . A e r i a l photograph of Necker I s l a n d showing prominent f e a t u r e s of

i s l a n d . O f f i c i a l U.S. Navy photograph, January 1966. 6 4. Oblique a e r i a l view of Necker I s l a n d from t h e n o r t h e a s t . BSFW

photograph by David B. M a r s h a l l , June 1962.

7

5. Shallow r i d g e between F l a g p o l e ( r i g h t ) and Summit ( l e f t ) H i l l s .

Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t , 28 August 1968. 8

6. Shallow r i d g e between Bowl (middle) and Summit ( l e f t ) H i l l s .

7.

Low gap between F l a g p o l e ( l e f t ) and Annexation ( r i g h t ) H i l l s .

8. Gap between Northwest Cape and Annexation H i l l a s viewed from Bowl H i l l . Shark Bay i n r i g h t mid-ground and l o o k i n g i n t o t h e

E a s t Cove l a n d i n g . Photograph by D e r r a l Herbst, 28 August 1968. 9 9. F r e q u e n t l y used l a n d i n g a r e a i n t h e West Cove l o o k i n g a t t h e

s o u t h e a s t e r n peak of Northwest Cape. Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t ,

28 August 1968. 1 0

1 0 . Adult and immature Red-footed Boobies and Great F r i g a t e b i r d r o o s t - i n g on u p r i g h t s of marae on Annexation H i l l . Blue-faced Booby i n mid-ground and l a r g e n e s t l i n g G r e a t F r i g a t e b i r d s i n background.

Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t , 28 August 1968. 1 4

11. Immature Red-footed Boobies r o o s t i n g on u p r i g h t s of marae on Annexation H i l l . N e s t l i n g G r e a t F r i g a t e b i r d s and immature Red- f o o t e d Booby i n foreground. Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t ,

28 August 1968. 1 4

12. Saddle between Summit and F l a g p o l e H i l l s , August 1968. Note dense growth of Chenopodim. Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t . 28 13. Saddle between Bowl and Summit H i l l s , August 1968. Photograph by

D e r r a l Herbst. 28

1 4 .

PortuZaca

Zutea S o l . growing on t h e Northwest Cape. Note n e s t i n g R e d - t a i l e d T r o p i c b i r d i n t h e l e f t background. Photograph by

D e r r a l H e r b s t , August 1968. 3 0

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iii

.

Young Laysan A l b a t r o s s among Red-footed Boobies and Great F r i g a t e b i r d s n e s t i n g i n

Chenopodiwn.

Northwest Cape i n t h e background. BSFW photograph by David B. M a r s h a l l , 11 J u n e 1962.

16. Sooty Tern n e s t i n g a r e a i n t h e s a d d l e between F l a g p o l e and Annexation H i l l s . Looking toward Annexation H i l l . Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t , 28 August 1968.

LIST OF TABLES

1. Recent s u r v e y s of Necker I s l a n d by t h e POBSP and BSFW.

2. The a v i f a u n a of Necker I s l a n d .

3 . O b s e r v a t i o n s of Black-footed A l b a t r o s s on Necker I s l a n d . 4. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Laysan A l b a t r o s s on Necker I s l a n d .

5. O b s e r v a t i o n s of BuLwerts P e t r e l on Necker I s l a n d .

6. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters on Necker I s l a n d . 7 . Observations of Red-tailed T r o p i c b i r d s on Necker I s l a n d . 8 . O b s e r v a t i o n s of Blue-faced Boobies on Necker I s l a n d . 9. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Brown Boobies on Necker I s l a n d . 10. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Red-footed Boobies on Necker I s l a n d 11. Observations of Great F r i g a t e b i r d s on Necker I s l a n d . 12. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Golden P l o v e r s on Necker I s l a n d . 13. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Ruddy T u r n s t o n e s . on Necker I s l a n d . 14. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Wandering T a t t l e r s on Necker I s l a n d . 15. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Gray-backed T e r n s on Necker I s l a n d . 16. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Sooty T e r n s on Necker I s l a n d .

17. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Blue-gray Noddies on Necker I s l a n d . 18. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Brown Noddies on Necker I s l a n d . 19. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Black Noddies on Necker I s l a n d .

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i v

20. Observations of White T e r n s on Necker I s l a n d . 78

21. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Hawaiian Monk S e a l s a t Necker I s l a n d . 8 0 22. O b s e r v a t i o n s of Green T u r t l e s a t Necker I s l a n d . 8 2

LIST OF APPENDIX TABLES 1. S c i e n t i f i c v i s i t s t o Necker I s l a n d , 1891-1973.

2 . R e s u l t s of s c i e n t i f i c v i s i t s t o Necker I s l a n d , 1891-1973. 96 3 . P u b l i c a t i o n s on c o l l e c t i o n s and s t u d i e s ( w i t h t h e e x c e p t i o n 98

of b i r d s ) made on Necker I s l a n d , 1891-1973.

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THE NATURAL HISTORY OF NECKER ISLAND, NORTHWESTERN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS' by Roger B. clapp' and Eugene ~ r i d l e r ~

INTRODUCTION

Necker I s l a n d , now a p a r t of t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s N a t i o n a l W i l d l i f e Refuge, i s a s m a l l , p r e c i p i t o u s , rocky i s l a n d t h a t l i e s a t 23035' North,

164042' West (Off. of Geogr., 1956: 58) n e a r t h e e a s t e r n end of t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s ( F i g u r e 1 ) . I t s n e a r e s t n e i g h b o r s i n t h e c h a i n a r e French F r i g a t e S h o a l s , l y i n g about 75 m i l e s t o t h e westward, and Nihoa I s l a n d , some 155 m i l e s t o t h e e a s t - s o u t h - e a s t ( G r e a t . B r i t . Hydro. D e p t . , 1946: 296-297).

R e l a t i v e l y l i t t l e i s known a b o u t t h e f a u n a of t h e i s l a n d , i n p a r t perhaps due t o t h e d i f f i c u l t y of making l a n d i n g s t h e r e . The p r i n c i p a l p r e v i o u s s u r v e y s of t h e i s l a n d were made by t h e A l b a t r o s s E x p e d i t i o n i n 1902, by C a r l Elschner i n 1914, and by t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n s of 1923 and 1924. The v a r i o u s s c i e n t i f i c r e p o r t s r e s u l t i n g from t h e s e expedi- t i o n s , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h o s e r e s u l t i n g from t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n s , and Bryan's (1942) summary of i n f o r m a t i o n supply most of what was p r e v i o u s l y known a b o u t t h e b i o t a a s w e l l a s t h e geology of t h e i s l a n d .

Beginning i n 1964 t h e P a c i f i c Ocean B i o l o g i c a l Survey Program ( h e r e a f t e r POBSP) of t h e Smithsonian I n s t i t u t i o n and t h e Bureau of Sport F i s h e r i e s and W i l d l i f e ( h e r e a f t e r BSFW) began making p e r i o d i c s u r v e y s of t h e fauna of t h e i s l a n d . From 1964 through 1973 13 v i s i t s were made, a l l but f i v e of them i n t h e months of March and September, which t o g e t h e r t o t a l e d only 7 . 0 days of o b s e r v a t i o n (Table 1 ) . Of t h e s e

seven d a y s , o n l y t h r e e n i g h t s were s p e n t on t h e i s l a n d , which a c c o u n t s , i n p a r t , f o r t h e p a u c i t y of d a t a on p e t r e l s .

T h i s r e p o r t , one of a s e r i e s on t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s , is p r i m a r i l y intended a s a summary of t h e s e and p r e v i o u s o b s e r v a t i o n s of

11

Paper Number 75, P a c i f i c Ocean B i o l o g i c a l Survey Program, Smithsonian

-

I n s t i t u t i o n , Washington, D.C.

21 P r e s e n t a d d r e s s : N a t i o n a l F i s h and W i l d l i f e L a b o r a t o r y , Bureau

-

of S p o r t F i s h e r i e s and W i l d l i f e , U.S. F i s h and W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e , N a t i o n a l Museum of N a t u r a l H i s t o r y , Washington, D.C. 20560.

31 P r e s e n t a d d r e s s : Bureau of S p o r t F i s h e r i e s and W i l d l i f e , U.S. F i s h

-

and W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e , K a i l u a , Oahu, Hawaii 96734.

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T a b l e 1. Recent s u r v e y s of Necker I s l a n d by t h e POBSP and BSFW*

Year T o t a l

Days of

Month 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1 9 7 1 1972 1973 O b s e r v a t i o n

Mar.

J u l y BSFW

(.4) Aug

.

S e p t . BSFW

POBSP (1.4)

BSFW POBSP

( . 4 )

BSFW BSFW

POBSP ( . 4 )

C.3)

BSFW ( . I )

BSFW BSFW

(1.4) ( . I )

BSFW ( . 3 )

BSFW ( . 2 )

BSFW

( . 3 ) .7

T o t a l Days of Observa-

t i o n 1.8 .4 1 . 3 .7 1.4 .5 .4 .2 .3 7 . 0

*POBSP i s l i s t e d under BSFW when POBSP p e r s o n n e l accompanied BSFW f i e l d p a r t i e s on one of t h e i r r e g u l a r i n s p e c t i o n t r i p s . F i g u r e s i n p a r e n t h e s e s are t h e a p p r o x i m a t e number of d a y s s p e n t on t h e i s l a n d . T a b l e i s c o m p l e t e t h r o u g h 1973 b u t d o e s n o t i n c l u d e v i s i t s d u r i n g which no l a n d i n g w a s made.

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t h e t e r r e s t r i a l v e r t e b r a t e s and v a s c u l a r p l a n t s of t h e i s l a n d . A b r i e f d e s c r i p t i o n and h i s t o r y of t h e i s l a n d a r e a l s o i n c l u d e d . S e c o n d a r i l y , t h i s r e p o r t should s e r v e a s a summary and r e f e r e n c e ( s e e Appendix T a b l e s 1 and 2) t o o t h e r b i o l o g i c a l and o t h e r i n f o r m a t i o n p r e v i o u s l y p u b l i s h e d about t h e i s l a n d . Through t h e c o u r t e s y of D r . Alexander Wetmore, t h e p r e v i o u s l y l a r g e l y u n r e p o r t e d o b s e r v a t i o n s on t h e b i r d l i f e made by him i n 1923 a r e a l s o i n c l u d e d .

The p r e s e n t r e p o r t was l a r g e l y i n f i n a l d r a f t form i n l a t e 1970 and i n c l u d e s o n l y s l i g h t emendation o r a d d i t i o n a f t e r t h a t p e r i o d . Observations r e p o r t e d i n c l u d e t h o s e a v a i l a b l e through 1973. Except f o r b o t a n i c a l o b s e r v a t i o n s , t h i s l a r g e l y e x c l u d e s t h e August 1968 s u r v e y , f o r which most d a t a were n o t a v a i l a b l e .

BSFW and POBSP f i e l d n o t e s and t r i p r e p o r t s concerning Necker a r e , r e s p e c t i v e l y , s t o r e d i n t h e Bureau of S p o r t F i s h e r i e s and W i l d l i f e f i l e s , K a i l u a , Oahu, Hawaii, and t h e P a c i f i c Ocean B i o l o g i c a l Survey Program f i l e s , N a t i o n a l Museum of N a t u r a l H i s t o r y , Washington, D.C.

DESCRIPTION

Necker, w i t h a n e s t i m a t e d a r e a of 4 1 a c r e s ( F i g . 2 ) , i s a s h a r p l y r i s i n g r i d g e of v o l c a n i c r o c k ( F i g s . 3 and 4) which Palmer (1927: 22) r e p o r t e d t o be t h e remnant of a v o l c a n i c cone t h a t was f o r m e r l y of much g r e a t e r e x t e n t . P a l m e r ' s r e p o r t on t h e geology a l s o g i v e s one of t h e b e s t d e s c r i p t i o n s of Necker. He r e p o r t e d t h a t t h e i s l a n d " . . . c o n s i s t s of two p a r t s . The p r i n c i p a l one i s a r i d g e e x t e n d i n g n e a r l y due e a s t and w e s t , 4,000 f e e t long and v a r y i n g from 200 t o 600 f e e t i n width.

On t h i s r i d g e a r e f i v e peaks

....

The s a d d l e s between t h e peaks a r e shallow [ F i g s . 5 and 61, e x c e p t t h e most w e s t e r l y [between Annexation Peak and F l a g p o l e H i l l ] , which d r o p s t o o n l y 76 f e e t i n e l e v a t i o n [ F i g . 71. From t h e westernmost peak a p e n i n s u l a e x t e n d s 500 f e e t n o r t h - n o r t h e a s t t o a gap o n l y a few f e e t above s e a l e v e l [ F i g . 81." Landings a r e g e n e r a l l y made h e r e and a r e o f t e n p a r t i c u l a r l y d i f f i c u l t and dangerous a s t h e p r e v a i l i n g winds from t h e n o r t h e a s t o f t e n c a u s e l a r g e b r e a k e r s t o break a c r o s s t h i s gap; "The l e s s e r p a r t of Necker I s l a n d , Northwest Cape [ F i g . 91, e x t e n d s about 800 f e e t n o r t h e a s t from t h i s gap

....

A t t h e e a s t end of t h e main p a r t of Necker i s a low i s l e t about 75 f e e t wide and 200 f e e t long. It i s awash a t h i g h water and waves b r e a k over i t c o n t i n u a l l y . "

On t h e n o r t h s i d e of t h e i s l a n d s t h e r o c k s r i s e p r e c i p i t o u s l y t o t h e peaks b u t on t h e n o r t h s i d e a r e somewhat l e s s s t e e p and a c c o r d i n g t o Emory (1928: 51) " a r e e a s i l y climbed."

The s t e e p s l o p e s of t h e i s l a n d have l i t t l e o r no v e g e t a t i o n and a r e craggy and wave-sculpted where a l t e r n a t i n g l a y e r s of h a r d e r and more s o f t r o c k have been d i f f e r e n t i a l l y eroded and b i r d d r o p p i n g s o f t e n

whiten t h e f a c e of t h e r o c k ( s e e F i g . 9 ) . Along t h e s h a l l o w v a l l e y s and on t h e rounded c r e s t s of t h e h i l l s a few s p e c i e s of p l a n t s a r e w e l l e s t a b l i s h e d i n t h e t h i n s o i l ( s e e V e g e t a t i o n S e c t i o n ) .

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Figure 2 Map of Necker I s l a n d . A f t e r Judd ( i n Palmer, 1927) and Elschner (1915). Names i n b r a c k e t s are t h o s e used by Elschner;

t h e o t h e r s a r e those used by t h e Tanager Expedition and subsequent v i s i t o r s .

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Figure

5

Shallow r i d g e between Fla,gpole ( r i g h t ) and Summit ( l e f t )

Hills.

Photograph by Derral Herbst,

28

August

1968.

Figure

6

Shallow r i d g e between Bowl (middle) and Summit ( r i g h t ) H i l l s . Photograph by D e m l Herbst,

28

August

1968.

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Figure

7

Low gap between Flagpole ( l e f t ) and Annexation ( r i g h t ) H i l l s . Photogmph by Derral Herbst, 28 August

1968.

Figure

8

Gap between Northwest Cape and Annexation H i l l a s viewed from Bowl H i l l . Shark Bat

i n

r i g h t mid-ground and looking

i n t o t h e E a s t Cove landing. Photograph by D e r r a l Herbst, 28 August

1968.

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Figure

9

Frequently used landing a r e a i n t h e West Cove looking a t t h e Southeastern Peak of Northwest Cape. Photograph by Derral Herbst, 28 August 1968.

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GEOLOGY

Palmer (1927) i s t h e o n l y one who h a s w r i t t e n t o any e x t e n t on t h e geology of Necker and our b r i e f account h e r e i s l a r g e l y taken from t h a t paper. Although t h e remnant of a v o l c a n i c cone, no p a r t of t h e o r i g i n a l s u r f a c e remains, a l l t h e p r e s e n t s u r f a c e s having r e s u l t e d from t h e a c t i o n of wind, s e a , and running w a t e r . Palmer suggested t h a t t h e deeper v a l l e y between Annexation and F l a g p o l e H i l l s h a s r e - s u l t e d from g r e a t e r wind e r o s i o n caused t h e r e by t h e f u n n e l i n g of t h e northwest t r a d e winds by t h e main r i d g e of t h e i s l a n d and by Northwest Cape. He (op. cit.: 23) c o n s i d e r e d i t l i k e l y t h a t

a t l e a s t a few hundred f e e t of overburden r o c k s have been removed from a l l p a r t s of t h e i s l a n d . There a r e now exposed a t t h e s u r f a c e v a r i o u s d i k e s and s i l l s , some of which a r e e n t i r e l y f r e e of g a s p o r e s . T h i s f e a t u r e i s u s u a l l y t a k e n t o mean t h a t t h e l a v a cooled and s o l i d i f i e d under c o n s i d e r a b l e p r e s s u r e , which i n t u r n i m p l i e s a c o n s i d e r a b l e overburden.

Necker h a s no d e f i n i t e stream c h a n n e l s and a l l r a i n w a t e r e i t h e r s i n k s i n t o t h e r o c k s o r r u n s o f f through unorganized c h a n n e l s . During h i s v i s i t Palmer found two seeps of ground w a t e r , b o t h e v i d e n t l y much contaminated by b i r d droppings. One was found n e a r Bowl Cave ( s e e F i g . 2) on t h e n o r t h s l o p e of t h e i s l a n d ; t h e o t h e r was about 30 f e e t above s e a l e v e l on t h e n o r t h s i d e of t h e s a d d l e between F l a g p o l e and Annexation H i l l s .

Palmer a l s o noted t h a t t h e beds of l a v a composing t h e i s l a n d a r e i n g e n e r a l f o u r t o s i x f e e t t h i c k and t h a t t h e y extend l a t e r a l l y f o r c o n s i d e r a b l e d i s t a n c e s . Two u n u s u a l l y t h i c k b e d s , 1 5 t o 20 f e e t t h i c k , a r e t o be found a t t h e e a s t end of t h e main i s l a n d . He noted t h a t i n g e n e r a l t h e l a v a beds s t r i k e "N. 700 W . , and d i p

l o 0

NE" and t h a t t h e l a v a beds a r e

c u t by a number of n e a r l y v e r t i c a l d i k e s t h a t s t r i k e a b o u t N . 70° E....The d i k e s v a r y from one t o f o u r f e e t i n t h i c k n e s s . Some of them, n o t a b l y t h e one on t h e n o r t h e a s t f a c e of [Annexation H i l l ]

...

a r e d e n s e and n e a r l y f r e e of v e s i c l e s , but o t h e r s a r e moderately porous. Most of t h e d i k e s a r e f i n e g r a i n e d a t t h e margins and c o a r s e g r a i n e d i n t h e i n t e r i o r . Some of t h e d i k e s branch one or more t i m e s , and one p a i r of d i k e s [ i s ] con- n e c t e d by a n o b l i q u e d i k e running a b o u t e a s t - west. The d i k e on t h e s o u t h e a s t s i d e of Northwest Cape c o n n e c t s w i t h and seems t o have f e d a s i l l t h a t o u t c r o p s on b o t h s i d e s of t h e cape. T h i s s i l l meets t h e s h o r e n e a r t h e m i d d l e of t h e cape and e x t e n d s upward toward t h e s o u t h e a s t end of t h e c a p e , c u t t i n g

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a c r o s s s e v e r a l f l o w s i n one p l a c e . A s i l l

a b o u t two f e e t t h i c k c r o p s o u t f o r a b o u t 150 f e e t on t h e summit of t h e main i s l a n d n e a r i t s e a s t end, and was a l s o presumably f e d by t h e d i k e which i s c o n t i n u o u s w i t h i t .

Palmer concluded t h a t t h e v e n t of t h e v o l c a n i c cone of which Necker i s a remnant l a y t o t h e southwest of t h e p r e s e n t p o s i t i o n of

t h e i s l a n d . He remarked, however, t h a t h i s c o n c l u s i o n (1927: 24)

" d i s a g r e e s w i t h t h e f a c t t h a t Necker l i e s t o t h e southwest of t h e a x i s of t h e e l l i p s e o u t l i n e d by t h e surrounding s h o a l s , " b u t suggested t h a t t h i s might b e e x p l a i n e d by t h e f a c t t h a t t h e s h o a l

"was composed of two o r more v o l c a n i c cones

....

and t h a t t h e windward cones have been removed a s t h e y were most exposed t o a t t a c k by waves d r i v e n by t h e p r e v a i l i n g n o r t h e a s t t r a d e winds. The a r e a of t h e s h o a l around Necker i s about 650 s q u a r e m i l e s which i s l a r g e enough t o have included two v o l c a n i c domes."

Palmer found no evidence of f a u l t i n g i n t h e beds composing Necker and noted t h a t t h e beds a l o n g t h e westernmost s a d d l e a r e c o n t i n u o u s .

Analyses of t h e r o c k composition have been g i v e n by Palmer, M8hle (1902), Powers (1920) and Washington and Keyes (1926). A l l t h e r o c k s s t u d i e d were b a s a l t s and w i t h i n t h i s c l a s s i f i c a t i o n con- s i s t e d of f o u r t y p e s , a n d e s i n e , o l i v i n e - l a b r o d o r i t e , p i c r i t e and n e p h a l i t i c b a s a l t s . F u r t h e r d e t a i l s of chemical composition of t h e s e r o c k s c a n b e found by c o n s u l t i n g t h e l i t e r a t u r e c i t e d .

Palmer a l s o found gypsum s t a l a c t i t e s and s t a l a g m i t e s i n some of t h e s h a l l o w caves of t h e i s l a n d . These d i f f e r e d from t h e u s u a l

i n t h a t t h e y had f a i r l y good c r y s t a l o u t l i n e s r a t h e r t h a n being more rounded i n form. According t o Palmer, t h e s e probably r e s u l t e d from t h e e v a p o r a t i o n of s a l t s p r a y .

HISTORY

P r e h i s t o r i c H a b i t a t i o n

Evidence of p r e h i s t o r i c h a b i t a t i o n of Necker I s l a n d was noted d u r i n g one of t h e e a r l i e s t l a n d i n g s on Necker which occurred a b o u t 1879. C a p t a i n William C . Bruhn, t h e n a young s a i l o r , e v i d e n t l y on t h e schooner JULIA, landed and explored t h e i s 1 a n d . l When h e was interviewed by Atkinson many y e a r s l a t e r Bruhn remembered s e e i n g marae ( s t o n e p l a t f o r m s w i t h a c o n v e n t i o n a l arrangement of u p r i g h t s ) ,

f o u r o r f i v e i d o l s , a few s t o n e a d z e s , and a s t o n e "shaped l i k e a rough dumbbell, two rough ends w i t h a handle t o c l u t c h w i t h t h e hand. The Hawaiians s a i d t h a t when s h a r k s were l e d t o s h a l l o w

l ~ m o r ~ (1928: 55) found no e v i d e n c e of a v i s i t i n 1879 b u t d i s c o v e r e d t h a t t h e JULIA had s a i l e d t o t h e South P a c i f i c on 13 J u l y 1882.

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p l a c e s t h a t t h i s dumbbell was used t o k i l l them by b e a t i n g them on t h e head." None of t h e i d o l s was c o l l e c t e d because of t h e super- s t i t i o u s f e a r of t h e Hawaiians on Bruhn's s h i p , b u t t h e dumbbell- shaped s t o n e was t a k e n and l a t e r t r a n s p o r t e d t o San F r a n c i s c o (Emory, 1928: 5 4 ) .

The p r e s e n c e of i d o l s and images was a g a i n noted on 27 May 1894 when t h e i s l a n d was annexed by t h e Hawaiian government. Seven i d o l s were t a k e n t o Honolulu and a photograph of s i x of them was p u b l i s h e d i n t h e J o u r n a l of t h e P o l y n e s i a n S o c i e t y (Alexander, 1894: 1 5 3 ) .

Subsequent v i s i t s and c o l l e c t i o n s a r e l i s t e d i n d e t a i l by Emory (1928). Four images (two now i n t h e B r i t i s h Museum) were c o l l e c t e d by a p a r t y from t h e HBMS CHAMPION on 24 September 1894, b u t no i d o l s were found on seven subsequent v i s i t s . The l a t t e r v i s i t s i n c l u d e d one on 12 J u l y 1895 by King, two of unknown d a t e by George N. Wilcox, v i s i t s i n 1910 and 1913 by p e r s o n n e l from t h e Revenue C u t t e r THETIS,

and two v i s i t s by H.L. Tucker and p a r t y i n 1917. Photographs were t a k e n of s e v e r a l marae on t h e l a t t e r v i s i t .

On 6 October 1919 G e r r i t P . Wilder c o l l e c t e d a n image l e g and a re-shaped image. I n t h e summer of 1923 a number of a r t i f a c t s

( i n c l u d i n g a hammerstone, g r i n d s t o n e s , a d z e s , a c h i s e l , a n awl and bowls) and s k e l e t a l m a t e r i a l were found by members of t h e Tanager Expedition.

O b s e r v a t i o n s made d u r i n g t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n and on e a r l i e r v i s i t s were r e p o r t e d i n g r e a t d e t a i l by Emory (1928) and need n o t b e r e p e a t e d a t l e n g t h h e r e . Some r e c o r d s , however, a r e worth n o t i n g .

Emory r e p o r t e d f i n d i n g 33 marae. Most were r e c t a n g u l a r s t r u c - t u r e s w i t h a narrow e l e v a t e d p l a t f o r m u s u a l l y found a t t h e r e a r , and a lower b r o a d e r t e r r a c e a t t h e f r o n t ( s e e F i g . 25 i n Emory, 1928:

6 0 ) . Various s t o n e s s t a n d i n g u p r i g h t were p l a c e d on t h e s t r u c t u r e ( F i g s . 1 0 and 1 1 ) . These p l a t f o r m s ranged i n l e n g t h from 1 7 . 5 t o 64 f e e t . The l e n g t h i n 1 6 of t h e s e averaged a b o u t 25 f e e t , and i n 11 about 40 f e e t . I n 25 maraes t h e width of t h e p l a t f o r m was f o u r t o s i x f e e t , i n two, t h r e e f e e t , and i n t h r e e , e i g h t t o n i n e f e e t . Emory a l s o counted 25 t e r r a c e s t h a t were r e c t a n g u l a r , unpaved, low, and u s u a l l y narrow. Two were j u s t west of t h e summit of

Annexation H i l l and a group of e i g h t was s o u t h of F l a g p o l e H i l l . Another group of s i x t e r r a c e s was found between F l a g p o l e and Summit H i l l s , and seven were found j u s t northwest of t h e c r e s t of Summit H i l l where a d o u b l e t e r r a c e a l s o was d i s c o v e r e d .

D e s p i t e a c o n s i d e r a b l e s e a r c h f o r a r e a s where p e o p l e might have l i v e d , only e i g h t hollows were found i n t h e b l u f f s of Necker t h a t gave evidence of occupancy. Emory r e p o r t e d t h a t a l l e i g h t g r o t t o s could probably s h e l t e r no more t h a n 24 persons. Only Bowl Cave, where most a r t i f a c t s were found, had e v i d e n t l y been c o n t i n u o u s l y occupied.

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F i g u r e 10 Adult and immature Red-footed Boobies and G r e a t F r i g a t e b i r d r o o s t i n g on u p r i g h t s of mame on Annexation H i l l . Blue-faced Booby

i n mid-ground and l a r g e n e s t l i n g Great F r i g a t e b i r d s i n background.

Photograph by D e r r a l H e r b s t , 28 August

1968.

Figure 11 Immature Red-footed Boobies r o o s t i n g on u p r i g h t s of mame on Annexation H i l l . N e s t l i n g Great F r i g a t e b i r d s and immature

Red-footed Booby i n foreground.

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There human l e g bones were found on t h e f l o o r . Emory s p e c u l a t e s t h a t t h e bones may have been t a k e n t o t h e cave f o r u s e i n making f i s h hooks, a common p r a c t i c e among Hawaiians.

Emory g i v e s d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n s of a l l images a v a i l a b l e t o him and s t a t e d t h a t a l l were "male human f i g u r e s carved i n t h e con- v e n t i o n a l i z e d form." The images, carved from v e s i c u l a r b a s a l t , v a r i e d i n c o l o r from l i g h t t o d a r k g r a y , and ranged i n h e i g h t from e i g h t t o 18 i n c h e s . They weighed from f o u r t o 25 pounds, " i n c l i n i n g e q u a l l y t o extremes."

A f t e r making a d e t a i l e d comparison of t h e archaeology of Necker and nearby Nihoa, and of t h e i r c u l t u r e s i n comparison w i t h o t h e r P a c i f i c c u l t u r e s , Emory concluded t h a t

t h i s r e v i e w of t h e c u l t u r a l a f f i n i t i e s of Nihoa and Necker, r e v e a l s t h e Necker c u l t u r e a s one which had been i n t r o d u c e d t o t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s from s o u t h e a s t P o l y n e s i a , probably from T a h i t i , and which, on t h e i s l a n d s e x c e p t i n g Necker had become f o r t h e most p a r t d i s p l a c e d , and f o r t h e r e s t , modified by t h e h i s t o r i c Hawaiian c u l t u r e .

He ended by s a y i n g "it seems r e a s o n a b l e t o adopt t h e view t h a t t h e Necker c u l t u r e i s a p u r e sample of t h e c u l t u r e p r e v a i l i n g i n Hawaii

b e f o r e t h e t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r y

...."

About 1 5 y e a r s a f t e r t h e p u b l i c a t i o n of Emory's p a p e r , c h a r c o a l and wood found i n 1923 i n Bowl Cave were carbon d a t e d by Libby (1954:

742). The age of t h e c h a r c o a l w a s placed a t 166 t o 200 y e a r s and t h a t of t h e wood a t 0 t o 250 y e a r s . Although t h e m a t e r i a l was pos- s i b l y contaminated, t h e r e s u l t s s u g g e s t a f a i r l y r e c e n t o c c u p a t i o n of Necker, but c l e a r l y do n o t r u l e o u t t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t t h e s t r u c t u r e s themselves were e r e c t e d s i x o r seven c e n t u r i e s ago.

C e r t a i n l y t h e c h a r c o a l and wood coul: have been brought t o t h e i s l a n d a t a l a t e r d a t e by fishermen o r wandering n a t i v e s .

European Discovery and E a r l y Visits

A l l a u t h o r s a g r e e t h a t t h e f i r s t European t o d i s c o v e r Necker,

was t h e French n a v i g a t o r , Jean F r a n s o i s d e F l a u p , Comte d e l a Perouse.

On 4 November 1786, en r o u t e t o Macao, l a ~ e r o u s e ' s f r i g a t e , t h e

BOUSSOLE, and i t s companion t h e ASTROLABE s i g h t e d a s m a l l rocky i s l a n d (Buck, 1953: 5 4 ) . The v e s s e l s s t o o d o f f s h o r e a l l n i g h t . The f o l l o w i n g morning La ~ & o u s e (1799) made t h e f o l l o w i n g n o t a t i o n s :

T h i s v e r y s m a l l i s l a n d i s l i t t l e more t h a n a r o c k of about f i v e hundred t o i s e s [= 1,000

~ a r d s ] i n l e n g t h , and s i x t y [ = 120 y a r d s ] i n e l e v a t i o n a t t h e most.

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It does not e x h i b i t a s i n g l e t r e e , b u t t h e r e i s a g r e a t d e a l of g r a s s n e a r t h e summit. The naked r o c k i s covered w i t h t h e dung of b i r d s , and i t s w h i t e a p p e a r a n c e a f f o r d s c o n t r a s t t o v a r i o u s r e d s p o t s , upon which t h e g r a s s h a s n o t sprung up. I approached w i t h i n t h e d i s t a n c e

of a t h i r d of a l e a g u e . The banks were perpen- d i c u l a r , l i k e a w a l l , and t h e s e a broke so v i o l e n t l y a g a i n s t them, t h a t i t was i m p o s s i b l e

t o l a n d . A s we s a i h d almost e n t i r e l y around i t , t h e p l a n of t h i s i s l a n d , a s w e l l a s t h e d i f f e r e n t views, a r e p e r f e c t l y a c c u r a t e . I t s l a t i t u d e and

l o n g i t u d e , a s determined by M r . D a g e l e t , a r e 23O34' n o r t h , and 166O52' r i m t of ~ a r i s . ~ I c a l l e d i t I s l e Necker [ i n honor of Monsieur Jacques Necker, French M i n i s t e r of Finance under Louis XVI]

.

The e x a c t d a t e of t h e f i r s t h i s t o r i c l a n d i n g on Necker i s n o t p r e c i s e l y known but a p p a r e n t l y o c c u r r e d a t t h e beginning of t h e 1 9 t h c e n t u r y . Bryan (1938: 2 2 ) r e p o r t e d t h a t John T u r n b u l l , who v i s i t e d Hawaii December 1802 t o J a n u a r y 1803 i n t h e B r i t i s h s h i p MARGARET, l e a r n e d t h a t two Hawaiians had landed on Necker sometime p r e v i o u s l y and had noted a "range of s t o n e s , placed w i t h some r e g u l a r i t y i n t h e manner of a w a l l , and a b o u t t h r e e f e e t high."

Necker was s i g h t e d a t l e a s t f o u r times i n t h e mid-1800's b u t no l a n d i n g s were made. The PORPOISE and t h e OREGON, p a r t of t h e U.S. Exploring E x p e d i t i o n , passed o f f s h o r e on 1 December 1841.

C h a r l e s Wilkes (1845: 389-390), commander of t h e e x p e d i t i o n , r e - marked t h a t " b i r d s , e s p e c i a l l y t h e w h i t e t e r n , had been s e e n i n numbers p r i o r t o [ s i g h t i n g t h e i s l a n d ] .

. ."

The v e s s e l s , t h r e e m i l e s o f f t h e r e e f surrounding Necker, made soundings b u t d i d n o t a t t e m p t t o land because of a " f u r i o u s s u r f b e a t i n g on a l l s i d e s of t h e

i s l a n d . " Necker's p o s i t i o n was c a l c u l a t e d a s 164°37'00" W . , 23O44' N . Necker was a g a i n observed from o f f s h o r e on 24 A p r i l 1857 by C a p t a i n John P a t y of t h e schooner MANUOKAWAI. P a t y (1857: 40) d e s c r i b e d Necker a s "a p r e c i p i t o u s r o c k , 300 f e e t h i g h , 1 m i l e long and h a l f a m i l e broad, w i t h s m a l l p a t c h e s of g r a s s on i t s s u r f a c e . ,I

Two y e a r s l a t e r , on t h e morning of 1 January 1859, L t . John M.

Brooke (ms.) viewed t h e i s l a n d from t h e U.S. schooner FENIMORE COOPER. L a t e r t h a t y e a r , on 29 A p r i l , C a p t a i n N.C. Brooks of t h e GAMBIA s i g h t e d Necker and t o o k i t s p o s i t i o n . Of t h e i s l a n d i t s e l f

I ,

Brooks (1860: 499) remarked o n l y t h a t , i t i s r o c k y , and a b o u t 1-112 t o 2 m i l e s long

...."

'The Greenwich l o n g i t u d e would be 1640 32'

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17 I n 1886 t h e f i s h i n g schooner GENERAL SIEGEL f i s h e d o f f Necker ( F a r r e l l , 1928: 253). T h i s t r i p i s n o t a b l e i n t h a t t h i s was t h e f i r s t t i m e s e a l s were recorded f o r t h e i s l a n d .

On 28 May 1891 t h e i s l a n d was viewed from t h e KAALOKAI by Henry Palmer and George C . Munro, members of t h e R o t h s c h i l d Expedi-

t i o n which was c o l l e c t i n g b i r d specimens i n t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s . Although t h e p a r t y wished t o l a n d , i t was prevented from doing so by heavy s e a s ( R o t h s c h i l d , 1893-1900: v i i i ) .

Hawaiian Annexation

The h i s t o r i c a l d e t a i l s of t h i s period were c a r e f u l l y r e s e a r c h e d and analyzed by P a u l i n e N . King (ms.). Our account f o l l o w s h e r s c l o s e l y , and we a r e d e e p l y i n d e b t e d t o h e r . Her t h e s i s should b e c o n s u l t e d f o r f u r t h e r d e t a i l s and f o r c i t a t i o n s of unpublished correspondence and o f f i c i a l communications.

I n t h e 1 8 9 0 ' s Necker became an i s l a n d of i n t e r n a t i o n a l i n t e r e s t s i n c e i t was n o t c l e a r which i f any n a t i o n held t i t l e t o i t . G r e a t B r i t a i n was i n t e r e s t e d i n l a y i n g c l a i m s t o i s l a n d s which would s e r v e a s mid-ocean s t a t i o n s f o r a c a b l e c o n n e c t i n g Canada and t h e A u s t r a l - Asian c o l o n i e s . She a l r e a d y claimed Fanning i n t h e Line I s l a n d s and s h e possessed many i s l a n d s between t h e L i n e s and A u s t r a l i a which would s e r v e a d e q u a t e l y a s s t a t i o n s . However, s h e needed a n i n t e r - m e d i a t e s t a t i o n between Canada and Fanning and t h e o n l y p o s s i b i l i t y

l a y w i t h i n t h e Hawaiian group.

I n t h e f a l l of 1893 two Canadians, Mackenzie Bowel1 and Sanford Fleming, began i n q u i r i n g i n t o t h e f e a s i b i l i t y of a c a b l e s t a t i o n i n t h e main Hawaiian I s l a n d s , and i n t o t h e p h y s i c a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s and i n t e r n a t i o n a l s t a t u s of Necker. They concluded t h a t t h e main Hawaiians would b e u n s u i t a b l e , p a r t l y because t h e y f e l t t h a t n a t i o n a l p r i d e demanded n a t i o n a l ownership of an i s l a n d s t a t i o n , and p a r t l y because t h e y f e l t u n c e r t a i n of t h e p o l i t i c a l f u t u r e of t h e Hawaiian government. Fleming s t r o n g l y recommended t h a t Necker I s l a n d b e secured a s a B r i t i s h p o s s e s s i o n .

Some months of p o l i t i c a l maneuvering followed. During t h i s p e r i o d , B r i t i s h o f f i c i a l d o m a t t e m p t e d t o d i s c o v e r whether t h e

Hawaiian government d i d , i n f a c t , c l a i m Necker, and, i f n o t , whether t h e United S t a t e s might o b j e c t t o B r i t a i n making s u c h a c l a i m . The United S t a t e s government remained n e u t r a l and noncommittal on t h e m a t t e r , o n l y i n d i c a t i n g t h a t i t c o n s i d e r e d t r a n s - P a c i f i c t e l e g r a p h i c

c o m u n i c a t i o n t o be of b e n e f i t t o t h e United S t a t e s a s w e l l a s t o G r e a t B r i t a i n and her c o l o n i e s . The Hawaiian government was i n i t i a l l y open t o t h e i d e a b u t wanted t o know more d e t a i l s a b o u t t h e B r i t i s h p l a n . Hawaii wished t o do n o t h i n g d e t r i m e n t a l t o t h e i n t e r e s t s of t h e United S t a t e s .

On 24 May 1894 t h e p r e s e n c e i n Honolulu of t h e CHAMPION, a B r i t i s h warship, and t h e v i s i t of i n q u i r y t o t h e s u r v e y o f f i c e of

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t h e Hawaiian government by t h e a c t i n g B r i t i s h Vice-consul, l e d t o t h e rumor t h a t t h e B r i t i s h were e n r o u t e t o c l a i m Necker I s l a n d . A s a r e s u l t t h e Executive Council of t h e Hawaiian government decided t h a t C a p t a i n James A. King, M i n i s t e r of t h e I n t e r i o r , should t r a v e l t o Necker immediately and c l a i m i t f o r Hawaii. On 25 May K i n g ' s s h i p , t h e c h a r t e r e d i n t e r i s l a n d steamer IWALANI, d e p a r t e d from Honolulu a t 1710. The CHAMPION d e p a r t e d 50 minutes l a t e r . Many o b s e r v e r s i n t e r p r e t e d t h i s a s a r a c e t o c l a i m Necker I s l a n d , a r a c e t h a t t h e CHAMPION would probably win s i n c e i t was t h e f a s t e r s h i p . Subsequent e v e n t s i n d i c a t e d , however, t h a t t h e CHAMPION was on no such m i s s i o n .

On 27 May t h e IWALANI reached Necker, and King, accompanied by members of t h e crew, went a s h o r e t o c l a i m t h e i s l a n d .

A q u o t a t i o n from t h e l o g of C a p t a i n Freeman (Emory, 1928: 55) d e s c r i b e s t h e l a n d i n g :

A t 1 1 : O O AM a r r i v e d a t t h e i s l a n d and dropped anchor i n 18 fathoms of w a t e r . We lowered a boat and proceeded t o land a t once w i t h H i s E x c e l l e n c y , Capt. J . A . King, Capt. Freeman, C.B. Norton and n i n e s a i l o r s , l e a v i n g t h e v e s s e l i n c h a r g e of t h e second o f f i c e r . A f t e r c o n s i d e r a b l e d i f f i c u l t y t h e p a r t y was s a f e l y landed. A hard c l i m b up a rugged c l i f f 260 f e e t h i g h , was s u c c e s s f u l l y accomplished, when H i s Excellency C a p t . King h o i s t e d t h e Hawaiian f l a g , r e a d t h e P r o c l a m a t i o n and took p o s s e s s i o n of t h e i s l a n d i n t h e name of t h e Hawaiian

Government....after a s t a y of about f o u r hours on t h e i s l a n d , we l e f t a t 5:30 PM f o r home, s t e e r - i n g E. by

s.,

a r r i v i n g a t Honolulu on Tuesday evening [May 291.

While on t h e i s l a n d , t h e p a r t y e r e c t e d a f l a g p o l e and a t t a c h e d t o i t , w i t h i n a copper t u b e , a copy of t h e paper c l a i m i n g a n n e x a t i o n . Tucker (ms.) r e p o r t s t h e c o n t e n t s of t h i s paper:

I, James A. King, M i n i s t e r of t h e I n t e r i o r of t h e P r o v i s i o n a l Government of t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s , i n pursuance of a commission g r a n t e d t o me by H i s E x c e l l e n c y , Sanford B. Dole, P r e s i d e n t of t h e p r o v i s i o n a l government of t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s , do hereby i n t h e name of s a i d government t a k e p o s s e s s i o n of t h i s

i s l a n d , known a s Necker I s l a n d a s a p a r t of t h e Hawaiian T e r r i t o r y ; t h e same being w i t h i n t h e Hawaiian a r c h i p e l a g o i n L a t . 23O35'18"

North and Long. 164039'00" w e s t , and having been claimed by t h e Hawaiian t e r r i t o r y s i n c e

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t h e y e a r 1845 when a n e x p e d i t i o n 3 under Capt.

W.M. P a t y was s e n t t o s u r v e y s a i d i s l a n d . Done a t Necker I s l a n d t h e 2 7 t h day of May i n

t h e y e a r of our Lord 1894.

Signed: J . A . King, M i n i s t e r of t h e I n t e r i o r

Wm. Freeman, Master of Hawaiian S t r . I w a l a n i J a s . Gregory, Chief O f f i c e r "Iwalani"

A l b e r t T u l l o t t

,

^2nd ^" ^{I ,}

L a t e 1 9 t h Century V i s i t s

On 24 September 1894, t h e HBMS CHAMPION d i d pay a v i s i t t o Necker and landed a s u r v e y p a r t y . A t l e a s t s i x men went a s h o r e , b u t C a p t a i n Rooke was a p p a r e n t l y n o t among them. Although t h e Hawaiian government had asked t h a t no images o r a r t i f a c t s b e d i s t u r b e d , f o u r were c o l l e c t e d .

The B r i t i s h had n o t y e t abandoned t h e i r i n t e n t i o n of u s i n g Necker I s l a n d f o r a c a b l e s t a t i o n . The B r i t i s h government s e n t a m i s s i o n t o Honolulu t o engage i n n e g o t i a t i o n s w i t h t h e Hawaiian

government b u t t h e y d i d n o t a c h i e v e t h e i r aims. They f a i l e d i n p a r t , p e r h a p s , because of a n t i - B r i t i s h s e n t i m e n t i n t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s , and i n p a r t because of t h e u n w i l l i n g n e s s of t h e Hawaiian government t o j e o p a r d i z e p o s s i b l e t i e s w i t h t h e United S t a t e s .

Necker was a g a i n v i s i t e d 1 2 J u l y 1895 by C a p t a i n J . A . King (ms.) and a survey p a r t y on t h e s h i p LEHUA. While mapping t h e i s l a n d , t h e y

landed and found t h a t t h e f l a g p o l e . . . p l a c e d i n p o s i t i o n i n May, 1894, had blown down. We r e p l a c e d t h e s t a f f i n p o s i t i o n . We found t h e Copper C y l i n d e r which had c o n t a i n e d t h e

Proclamation open and t h e document on a r o c k under t h e s t a f f . The Proclamation had been opened and a w r i t t e n memorandum i n p e n c i l was on t h e back of i t , s i g n e d by O f f i c e r s of t h e H.B.M.S. Champion. One name I was a b l e t o d e c i f e r a s t h a t of L i e u t . Nugent, t h e o t h e r s I could n o t make o u t . The memorandum s t a t e d a s n e a r a s I can remember a s f o l l o w s : 'We, t h e undersigned o f f i c e r s of t h e H.B.M.S.

Champion, on 24th of September 1894, surveyed Necker I s l a n d s h o a l ; r u n n i n g S.E. 35 m i l e s , N.E. 1 5 m i l e s , and t e n m i l e s i n a l l d i r e c t i o n s . We found no l e s s t h a n 1 5 fathoms of water one m i l e d i s t a n c e from s h o r e . '

3 ~ e have been u n a b l e t o d i s c o v e r any o t h e r r e f e r e n c e t o t h i s 1845 voyage.

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We r e t u r n e d t h e P r o c l a m a t i o n t o t h e C y l i n d e r and made i t f a s t t o t h e b a s e of t h e s t a f f .

Tucker (ms.) i n 1917 a l s o saw t h i s Proclamation and r e p o r t e d t h e t e x t a s " t h i s i s l a n d known a s Necker I s l a n d was surveyed by t h e undermentioned o f f i c e r s of Her Hawaiian M a j e s t y ' s s h i p Champion Sept. 1894 and a l s o t h e bank e x t e n d i n g 35 m i l e s SE, 1 5 m i l e s NE,

? m i l e s i n t h e o t h e r d i r e c t i o n . " The "Hawaiian M a j e s t y ' s " p a r t of t h i s q u o t a t i o n i s undoubtedly i n c o r r e c t b u t t h e absence of a d a t e f o r September 1894 throws some doubt on e x a c t l y when t h e i s l a n d was v i s i t e d . Tucker a l s o deciphered a number of o t h e r names i n d i c a t i n g t h a t L i e u t . Rowland Nugent, L i e u t . F r e d e r i c k , A.H. Walker, Richard Markham and t h r e e o t h e r s i n c l u d i n g two midshipmen had v i s i t e d t h e

i s l a n d .

George N. Wilcox e v i d e n t l y v i s i t e d t h e i s l a n d on a t l e a s t two o c c a s i o n s a t about t h i s p e r i o d (Emory, 1928: 4 8 ) , b u t we have no i n f o r m a t i o n concerning h i s v i s i t s .

I n 1902 Necker was v i s i t e d by t h e U.S. F i s h C o m i s s i o n Steamer ALBATROSS which was engaged i n deep-sea i n v e s t i g a t i o n s around t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s . The s h i p a r r i v e d o f f s h o r e on t h e a f t e r n o o n of 30 May and anchored o f f t h e west end of t h e i s l a n d . The f o l l o w i n g day t h e f o u r n a t u r a l i s t s aboard ( C h a r l e s H. G i l b e r t , Walter K. F i s h e r , John 0 . Snyder, and C h a r l e s C . N u t t i n g ) landed and s p e n t a few h o u r s on t h e i s l a n d (Thomas, ms.). F i s h e r l a t e r r e p o r t e d t h a t 17 s p e c i e s of b i r d s were s e e n and d e s c r i b e d one of them (Blue-gray Noddy) a s a new s p e c i e s ( F i s h e r , 1903a, b ) .

I n r e s p o n s e t o c o n s i d e r a b l e a g i t a t i o n over Japanese f e a t h e r g a t h e r i n g i n t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s i n t h e e a r l y 1 9 0 0 1 s , Necker was i n c l u d e d i n t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d R e s e r v a t i o n . T h i s

r e s e r v a t i o n , e s t a b l i s h e d 3 F e b r u a r y 1909 by P r e s i d e n t Theodore R o o s e v e l t ' s Executive Order No. 1019, i n c l u d e d a l l n o r t h w e s t e r n

Hawaiian I s l a n d s b u t Midway. They were p l a c e d under t h e j u r i s d i c t i o n of t h e Department of A g r i c u l t u r e and s e t a s i d e a s a p r e s e r v e f o r t h e n a t i v e b i r d s .

From 1909 t o 1916 t h e U.S. Coast Guard C u t t e r THETIS voyaged f r e q u e n t l y a l o n g t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian Chain. The v i s i t s had s e v e r a l o b j e c t i v e s : apprehension of J a p a n e s e b i r d poachers who had been d e s t r o y i n g b i r d s on v a r i o u s i s l a n d s ; i n s p e c t i o n of t h e i s l a n d s t o d e t e r m i n e whether f u r t h e r poaching had o c c u r r e d ; t r a n s p o r t a t i o n of v a r i o u s s c i e n t i f i c p a r t i e s who wished t o s t u d y t h e fauna of t h e i s l a n d s ; and t r a n s p o r t a t i o n of m a i l and s u p p l i e s t o Midway A t o l l . P a r t i e s a t t e m p t e d t o land on Necker on s e v e r a l o c c a s i o n s .

A s t h e THETIS passed Necker on t h e morning of 1 3 J a n u a r y 1910, W. J a c o b s , t h e v e s s e l ' s commander, noted a n a b s e n c e of b i r d and human l i f e on t h e i s l a n d which was "covered w i t h a growth of g r a s s

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on t h e c e n t r a l r i d g e . " No l a n d i n g was made because of dangerous s u r f (Jacobs, ms.). The THETIS v i s i t e d Necker a g a i n on 22 May, 25 August, and 5 September b u t no evidence of m o l e s t a t i o n of t h e b i r d l i f e was s e e n .

I n 1912, w h i l e t r a n s p o r t i n g a U.S. B i o l o g i c a l Survey p a r t y t o Laysan, t h e THETIS passed o f f s h o r e on 18 December. Heavy s w e l l s prevented l a n d i n g . On 9 March 1913, d u r i n g t h e r e t u r n t r i p of t h e survey p a r t y , two of i t s members, George Willett and A l f r e d M. B a i l e y , attempted t o land i n a s h i p ' s b o a t b u t were a g a i n prevented from

doing s o by h i g h s u r f . W i l l e t t , undaunted, swam a s h o r e . D e s p i t e t h e inconvenience of being naked, W i l l e t t s p e n t a b o u t two hours on t h e i s l a n d and obtained a few n o t e s on t h e k i n d s of b i r d s p r e s e n t and t h e i r n e s t i n g s t a t u s ( B a i l e y , 1956: 32; W i l l e t t , ms.).

On 8 September 1914 C a r l E l s c h n e r and o t h e r s went a s h o r e from t h e THETIS. Elschner (1915) made n o t e s on m i n e r a l s and geology and named a number of t h e prominent f e a t u r e s of t h e i s l a n d ( s e e F i g . 2 ) . Apparently t h e s e names were n e v e r i n common u s a g e and a l l were r e -

placed by names s u b s e q u e n t l y a p p l i e d t o them by t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n . I n November 1914 W.A. Bryan (ms.), a noted o r n i t h o l o g i s t and

sometime Honolulu p o l i t i c i a n , made a p p l i c a t i o n t o H.W. Henshaw of t h e B i o l o g i c a l Survey f o r t h e l e a s e of Necker I s l a n d . H i s r e a s o n s f o r s o doing were t h a t " t h e l o n g i n g t o be 'monarch of a l l I s u r v e y ' has always been w i t h me and a l e a s e t o Necker seems t o be about a s n e a r a s I am l i a b l e t o g e t t o r e a l i z a t i o n of t h e l o n g i n g . " D e s p i t e Bryan's l o n g i n g t h e l e a s e was never g r a n t e d .

Bryan was n o t t h e o n l y one t o a t t e m p t t o l e a s e Necker. The T e r r i t o r y of Hawaii l e a s e d Necker t o A.C. Lovekin on 2 June 1907

( F r e a r , ms.)

.

The THETIS a g a i n passed Necker on 1 9 March 1915 but once more heavy s u r f made a l a n d i n g i m p o s s i b l e .

I n e a r l y 1916 t h e THETIS p a i d two v i s i t s t o Necker and on b o t h v i s i t s men landed on t h e i s l a n d . On t h e f i r s t v i s i t , l a t e i n t h e a f t e r n o o n of 27 January, t h r e e o f f i c e r s landed by swimming t o a s h e l f of r o c k i n t h e E a s t Cove (now known a s Shark Bay). During t h e i r b r i e f v i s i t t h e y explored o n l y t h e westernmost peak of t h e i s l a n d (Annexa-

t i o n Peak). An e a s i e r l a n d i n g was e f f e c t e d on 11 February when s l i g h t s w e l l s allowed t h e survey p a r t y t o s t e p from t h e dinghy t o a r o c k s h e l f edging Shark Bay. During t h e t h r e e hour v i s i t most of t h e e a s t e r n p o r t i o n of t h e i s l a n d was e x p l o r e d . L t . W.H. Munter, who v i s i t e d t h e i s l a n d on both o c c a s i o n s , l a t e r made a d e t a i l e d r e p o r t of

t h i s v i s i t and included a c o n s i d e r a b l e amount of i n f o r m a t i o n o n t h e b i r d l i f e (Munter, ms.).

Necker was v i s i t e d t w i c e i n 1917. H.L. Tucker and o t h e r s landed from t h e power sampan NAKAIWA on 25 October, and Tucker and seven o t h e r members of t h e crew of t h e J . A . CUMMINS stopped t h e r e on

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5 November (Tucker, m s . )

.

They r e d i s c o v e r e d t h e Annexat i o n Documents and noted t h e few b i r d s p r e s e n t . Tucker and Eben P. Low took a number of photographs of t h e b i r d s .

The f o l l o w i n g f a l l , on 3 September 1918, t h e USS HERMES steamed around t h e i s l a n d d u r i n g a n i n s p e c t i o n t r i p of t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s . I n a r e p o r t of t h i s t r i p Diggs (ms.) b r i e f l y noted t h e p r e s e n c e of s i x s p e c i e s of b i r d s . On 6 October 1919, Wilder, Warden of t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s Bird R e s e r v a t i o n , v i s i t e d Necker i n t h e l i g h t h o u s e t e n d e r KUKUI (Emory, 1928: 5 9 ) .

The v i s i t s made t o Necker by t h e Tanager E x p e d i t i o n i n J u n e 1923 and i n J u l y 1924 r e s u l t e d i n a g r e a t e r accumulation of knowledge a b o u t t h e i s l a n d t h a n d i d any p r e v i o u s o r subsequent v i s i t . P l a n s

f o r t h i s e x p e d i t i o n , which v i s i t e d a l l t h e n o r t h w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s , Wake I s l a n d , and J o h n s t o n A t o l l , were formulated i n 1922 i n c o n f e r e n c e s between t h e U.S. Navy N a t i o n a l Research C o u n c i l , t h e U.S. B i o l o g i c a l Survey, and t h e B e r n i c e P. Bishop Museum. The Navy provided t h e s h i p ( t h e minesweeper TANAGER), a d i r e c t o r of n a v a l work

(Commander S.W. King), and agreed t o c h a r t hydrographic d a t a ; t h e B i o l o g i c a l Survey provided a n o r n i t h o l o g i s t (Alexander Wetmore) t o l e a d t h e p a r t y , a r a b b i t - k i l l i n g s p e c i a l i s t (E.C. Reno), and a movie camera. Other p e r s o n n e l were s u p p l i e d by t h e Bishop Museum (Gregory, 1924: 19-22).

We a r e n o t c e r t a i n of t h e e x a c t i t i n e r a r i e s of e v e r y i n d i v i d u a l b u t b e l i e v e t h e f o l l o w i n g a c c o u n t , d e r i v e d p r i m a r i l y from a n exami- n a t i o n of Wetmore's (ms.) f i e l d n o t e s , i s a c c u r a t e .

I n a l l , f i v e voyages were made which included t h r e e v i s i t s t o Necker (two on t r i p C and one on t r i p E ) . On t r i p C , w h i l e p a r t of

t h e f i e l d p a r t y remained on Nihoa, o t h e r s i n c l u d i n g Anderson, Atkinson, Judd, Palmer, Caum, and C a r t r i g h t , proceeded t o Necker where t h e y s e t up camp on 1 2 June. On t h e 1 6 t h Judd, Palmer, Caum, and C a r t r i g h t d e p a r t e d f o r Nihoa where t h e y r e p l a c e d Wetmore,

Schlemmer, Grant, Bryan, and Thaanum who s a i l e d t o Necker where t h e y remained from t h e a f t e r n o o n of 17 June t h r o u g h t h e morning of 21 June.

Atkinson d e p a r t e d Necker on t h e a f t e r n o o n of 17 June. A f t e r a s u r v e y of French F r i g a t e S h o a l s , p a r t of t h a t f i e l d p a r t y r e t u r n e d t o

Necker f o r a d a y ' s s u r v e y on 29 June. Those going a s h o r e i n c l u d e d Wetmore, Judd, C a r t r i g h t , Anderson, Caum, Palmer, Bryan, and Schlemmer.

The f o l l o w i n g y e a r , a t t h e r e q u e s t of t h e N a t i o n a l Research C o u n c i l , t h e Navy provided t h e TANAGER f o r a r e s u r v e y of Necker and Nihoa. T h i s s u r v e y placed most emphasis on a r c h a e o l o g i c a l work. The f i e l d p a r t y (Appendix Table 1 ) camped on Necker from t h e morning of 15 J u l y u n t i l t h e a f t e r n o o n of 18 J u l y (Gregory, 1925: 19-20).

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There a r e few r e c o r d s of l a n d i n g s on Necker d u r i n g t h i s p e r i o d . The i s l a n d was o f t e n s i g h t e d i n t h e 1 9 3 0 ' s and ' 4 0 ' s by U.S. n a v a l v e s s e l s engaged i n v a r i o u s f l e e t maneuvers (Amerson, ms.) o r by U.S.

Coast Guard v e s s e l s c r u i s i n g up t h e c h a i n .

On 4 March 1936 a l a n d i n g was made by A.D. Trempe ( m s . ) , co- o p e r a t o r f o r t h e B i o l o g i c a l Survey, and members of t h e crew of t h e Coast Guard v e s s e l RELIANCE, B.L. Bassham commanding. Trempe l a t e r wrote a b r i e f r e p o r t on b i r d s s e e n on o t h e r i s l a n d s v i s i t e d (Nihoa, French F r i g a t e S h o a l s , Laysan) d u r i n g t h e c r u i s e b u t f o r Necker r e p o r t e d o n l y t h a t "much t h e same b i r d s " were s e e n a s were s e e n on Nihoa.

The name of t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d R e s e r v a t i o n was changed on 25 J u l y 1940 t o t h e Hawaiian I s l a n d s N a t i o n a l W i l d l i f e Refuge, and i t s j u r i s d i c t i o n was t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e U.S. F i s h and W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e i n t h e U.S. Department of t h e I n t e r i o r . I n December 1951 t h e W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e e n t e r e d i n t o a n agreement w i t h t h e T e r r i t o r y of Hawaii; one of t h e p r o v i s i o n s of t h e agreement was t h a t p a t r o l of t h e r e f u g e would be by T e r r i t o r i a l p e r s o n n e l .

On 20 December 1953 Frank Richardson of t h e U n i v e r s i t y of Washington v i s i t e d Necker b r i e f l y from t h e Coast Guard v e s s e l BUTTONWOOD. He covered o n l y a b o u t h a l f t h e i s l a n d b u t recorded 12 s p e c i e s of b i r d s (Richardson, p e r s . comm.). Some of h i s o b s e r v a t i o n s were l a t e r i n c o r p o r a t e d i n a paper on t h e b r e e d i n g c y c l e s of Hawaiian

s e a b i r d s (Richardson, 1957)

.

Dale W. Rice and K a r l W. Kenyon made a n a e r i a l s u r v e y of t h e i s l a n d on 28 December 1957. A l b a t r o s s p o p u l a t i o n s were e s t i m a t e d from c o u n t s i n low-level photographs ( R i c e and Kenyon, 1962).

I n 1961 Necker was v i s i t e d 25 t o 26 March by t h e USS DWAL COUNTY (LST 758) which was d e t e r m i n i n g e x a c t l o c a t i o n s of t h e n o r t h - w e s t e r n Hawaiian I s l a n d s . During t h i s v i s i t t h e p r o j e c t known a s HIRAN I was p l o t t i n g f i r s t o r d e r astronomic s t r a t a and azimuth marks by c o n v e n t i o n a l methods (Roach, ms.).

On 11 J u n e of t h e f o l l o w i n g y e a r Necker was v i s i t e d from t h e USS STONE COUNTY by f o u r b i o l o g i s t s , two of them from t h e Hawaii D i v i s i o n of F i s h and Game (Appendix T a b l e 1 ) . During t h e i r v e r y b r i e f v i s i t a few n o t e s were made on v e g e t a t i o n , b i r d s , and t h e d e b r i s l e f t from t h e HIRAN I o p e r a t i o n (Kramer and B e a r d s l e y , ms.).

A t t h a t time s e v e r a l m i l i t a r y p e r s o n n e l were camping on t h e i s l a n d and were engaged i n t h e HIRAN I1 p r o j e c t (Marshall, ms.).

R e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r p a t r o l and i n s p e c t i o n of Necker was assumed i n March 1964 by t h e U.S. Bureau of S p o r t F i s h e r i e s and W i l d l i f e i n

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t h e U.S. F i s h and W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e and a r e f u g e manager was a s s i g n e d t o Hawaii. From t h e n through J u l y 1973 1 3 l a n d i n g s were made on Necker ( s e e T a b l e 1 ) . P e r s o n n e l from t h e Smithsonian I n s t i t u t i o n ' s POBSP p a r t i c i p a t e d i n f o u r of t h e s u r v e y s , t h o s e made i n March and September 1964, March 1965, and March 1967.

Landings on t h i s i s l a n d have been e x c e e d i n g l y hazardous and inclement weather h a s o f t e n prevented l a n d i n g s o r , i n some i n s t a n c e s , caused p r e c i p i t a t e d e p a r t u r e s . Some i d e a of t h e d i f f i c u l t y and

h a z a r d s of l a n d i n g on Necker can b e g o t t e n from two r e c e n t f i r s t - hand a c c o u n t s .

Concerning t h e d e p a r t u r e on 22 March 1969, John Sincock noted t h a t

Viewing a 25 f o o t s u r g e a t t h e r o c k s h e l f [from which d e p a r t u r e s a r e made] and f r e q u e n t 3-4-foot- deep waves c r a s h i n g a c r o s s [ i t ] I suddenly agreed w h o l e h e a r t e d l y w i t h [ t h e ] r e c e n t memorandum...

t h a t hazardous d u t y pay was j u s t i f i e d

....

^[Eugene]

K r i d l e r , [David] Olsen and I had our s h a r e of being knocked o f f our f e e t , swept a l o n g t h e r o c k l e d g e , and t h e n being swept toward t h e edge when t h e s e a dropped 20-25 f e e t . K r i d l e r ' s extended hand prevented me from going over o n c e , and I t h i n k I r e c i p r o c a t e d 2 o r 3 waves l a t e r . We...lost t r a c k of how many times we were knocked down, o r which way was up. Olsen jumped t o t h e [ r u b b e r ] b o a t i n good shape and was taken t o t h e l i f e b o a t . Two knockdowns l a t e r t h e rubber b o a t r e t u r n e d f o r Gene and me...we b o t h had decided a f r e e d i v e i n t o t h e r u b b e r boat was p r e f e r a b l e t o a n o t h e r s l u i c i n g a c r o s s t h e r o c k s . We waved o f f t h e bowline..

.

because of t h e hazard of becoming e n t a n g l e d . I jumped i n t o s p a c e l i k e a s k y d i v e r and f e l t l i k e I had f o r g o t t e n my p a r a c h u t e , b u t I d i d n ' t c a t c h up w i t h t h e b o a t u n t i l i t was a t t h e bottom of t h e s u r g e . K r i d l e r . . . d o v e n e x t , [and landed] spread- e a g l e on t o p of t h e c o a s t guardsman i n t h e bow....

Only one o r two bags of equipment were l o s t and wounds were only superf i c i a l (BSFW)

.

On t h e n e x t v i s i t , 30 May 1969, Olsen d e s c r i b e d t h e p e r i l s of l a n d i n g on Necker. S i n c e t h e u s u a l l a n d i n g p l a c e ( t h e n o r t h w e s t s i d e of t h e low r o c k s h e l f c o n n e c t i n g t h e main i s l a n d and Northwest Cape) had proven hazardous on p r e v i o u s v i s i t s , a n a l t e r n a t i v e l a n d i n g p l a c e on Shark Bay was i n v e s t i g a t e d and Olsen decided t o s w i m a s h o r e . H i s a c c o u n t of t h e a t t e m p t p o i n t s o u t a n o t h e r of t h e h a z a r d s around t h e i s l a n d .

I was about 75 f t . from t h e s h o r e l i n e when s i x s h a r k s came r u s h i n g a t me from my l e f t f r o n t .

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I turned t o f a c e them a s t h e y went behind m e --another 1 0 s h a r k s came i n from my r i g h t . The water was simply i n f e s t e d w i t h s h a r k s swimming round and round me i n a . .

.

[ f r e n z i e d ]

...

^manner. Some were no more than a f o o t from me a s they sped by me. A t t h a t time I was about 25 f t . from t h e l e d g e and I swam

l i k e I never had b e f o r e , e x p e c t i n g t o be a t t a c k e d a t any second. F i n s [were] a l l around m e on t h e s u r f a c e , and t h e water was

l i t e r a l l y b o i l i n g w i t h s h a r k s

...

F i n a l l y , a wave swept me up on t h e l e d g e , b u t I was u n a b l e t o hold on and I was washed i n t o t h e

s u r g e a g a i n - - [ i n t o a ] mass of s w i r l i n g f i n s . I caught t h e n e x t s w e l l and scampered t o s a f e t y . A s I stood t h e r e I counted 45 s h a r k s swimming around i n t h e w a t e r s a t my f e e t (BSFW)

.

The primary purpose of most of t h e s e r e c e n t s u r v e y s h a s been i n s p e c t i o n and p a t r o l of t h e i s l a n d . No survey has been longer than two days. N o n e t h e l e s s , a c o n s i d e r a b l e amount of i n f o r m a t i o n on t h e b i o t a has been o b t a i n e