Traditional resource management (TRM) systems in tropical forests can provide insights on sustainable resource use, but despite the growing prevalence of degraded tropical forest habitats, few studies have assessed the relationships between TRM and conservation in these environments. In Hawaii, the traditional gathering of native wild plants used for hula (chants and dance) and lei (garlands) is carried out in forests increasingly dominated by alien invasive species. Ethnographic methods and exploratory experimental harvests were employed to examine: gathering of hula plants in the past and present, ecological impacts of contemporary gathering practices of three important native hula species in alien-dominated forests, and relationships between traditional practices and past and modern conservation. Past gathering traditions included practices to increase and conserve hula plant populations. Harvest of Microlepia strigosa fern fronds significantly decreased M. strigosa cover over the short term. Cover of alien species significantly increased after frond-harvest of Sphenomeris chinensis. Regeneration of the fruit-harvested shrub, Melicope anisata, was significantly negatively correlated with the level of understorey invasive species. These results suggest that in Hawai‘i’s alien-dominated forests, gathering of some species may increase spread of alien invasive species or exacerbate regeneration problems caused by invasive species. However, some expert cultural practitioners have adapted traditional practices to ensure hula plant conservation by incorporating weeding of alien invasive species into their protocols. The re-strengthening and adaptation of traditional Hawaiian knowledge and social institutions to the modern context can provide opportunities to improve conservation of Hawai‘i’s culturally-important native plants and their habitats.

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Non-timber forest products (NTFP) represent culturally and economically important resources for millions of people worldwide. Although many NTFP are harvested from disturbed habitats and therefore subject to multiple pressures, few quantitative studies have addressed this issue. Similarly few NTFP studies have assessed seasonal variation in demographic rates even though this can confound harvest effects. In Hawai'i, the wild-gathered ferns, Microlepia strigosa and Sphenomeris chinensis, represent highly important cultural resources but declining populations have led to conservation concerns. Both ferns are harvested from disturbed, alien-dominated forests and contemporary Hawaiian gathering practices often consist of harvest and concurrent weeding of alien invasive species. We assessed the effects of concurrent frond-harvest and alien species weeding on frond structure, density, and rates of production by comparing experimentally harvested vs. control plots, and documented relationships between frond demographic patterns and precipitation. Gathering practices had no impact on frond density of either species or on most other demographic parameters over the short term. Exceptions included a significant decrease in the density of the longest S. chinensis fronds and a significant decrease in M. strigosa frond production when fronds were gathered without alien weeding. However, seasonal and annual changes in frond density and production occurred across all plots of both species and were significantly correlated with precipitation. The relatively low harvest effects for both species are likely due to several factors including short frond longevity and the strict criteria used by gatherers to select harvestable fronds. The potential for sustainable harvest in the context of alien-dominated forests is discussed.

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