Synthesizing data from multiple sources to support the Hawaii fish habitat partnership efforts

To support the Hawaii Fish Habitat Partnership (HFHP), the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Hawaii Division of Aquatic Resources, and Bishop Museum have collaborated on the production of the Atlas of Hawaiian Watersheds & Their Aquatic Resources, the Atlas of Hawaiian Stream Animals, and a geo-referenced database of instream barriers to fish migration.  A spatially-nested database was linked with GIS to synthesize information from field surveys, research findings, and published information on multiple species in freshwater and estuarine habitats.  The database stores information from historic and recent statewide stream surveys and results from over 300 reports and publications. These products are statewide in coverage and are being integrated with the Hawaii portion of the National Fish Habitat Assessment to provide a comprehensive description of fish habitat, distribution, vulnerability, and restoration potential. The integrated and comparative rankings of the fish habitat at multiple scales allows the HFHP to improve its capacity to plan and implement technically sound statewide aquatic habitat restoration plans. These products also provide HFHP member partners the ability to quickly access summarized information and recent survey results directly targeted to their needs, while citizens, watershed groups, and non-governmental organizations are able to better understand their local aquatic resources.