KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of marine protected areas

Learn the wildlife of the Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Sanctuary

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797 species have research-grade observations in the Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Sanctuary on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, from fish and seabirds to the life along the shore.

iNaturalist's place for the Papahānaumokuākea World Heritage Site, which shares its boundary.

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Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. Laysan Albatross Phoebastria immutabilis331
  2. Laysan Duck Anas laysanensis151
  3. Black-footed Albatross Phoebastria nigripes146
  4. Blue-billed White-Tern Gygis candida123
  5. Great Frigatebird Fregata minor111
  6. Red-footed Booby Sula sula99
  7. Brown Booby Sula leucogaster91
  8. Red-tailed Tropicbird Phaethon rubricauda86
  9. Bonin Petrel Pterodroma hypoleuca82
  10. Masked Booby Sula dactylatra77

Plants

  1. Beach naupaka Scaevola taccada25
  2. Sea purslane Sesuvium portulacastrum17
  3. ʻAweoweo Chenopodium oahuense17
  4. Nelson's Horsenettle Solanum nelsonii17
  5. Cowpen daisy Verbesina encelioides16
  6. Jamaican feverplant Tribulus cistoides16
  7. Tree heliotrope Heliotropium arboreum16
  8. Beach Morning Glory Ipomoea pes-caprae13
  9. Oceanblue morning glory Ipomoea indica13
  10. Kawelu Eragrostis variabilis13

Mammals

  1. Hawaiian Monk Seal Neomonachus schauinslandi107
  2. Spinner Dolphin Stenella longirostris23
  3. Common Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus6
  4. House Mouse Mus musculus5

Insects

  1. Southern Green Stink Bug Nezara viridula17
  2. Midway emerald beetle Protaetia pryeri15
  3. Variable Ladybird Beetle Coelophora inaequalis8
  4. Shore Earwig Labidura riparia7
  5. Common Green Darner Anax junius5
  6. Pink-spotted Hawkmoth Agrius cingulata5
  7. Oriental Mud-dauber Wasp Chalybion bengalense5
  8. White-lined Sphinx Hyles lineata4
  9. Green Garden Looper Chrysodeixis eriosoma4
  10. Mealybug Destroyer Cryptolaemus montrouzieri4

Spiders and kin

  1. Pantropical Huntsman Spider Heteropoda venatoria17
  2. Western Spotted Orbweaver Neoscona oaxacensis5
  3. Gray Wall Jumping Spider Menemerus bivittatus4
  4. Adanson's House Jumper Hasarius adansoni3
  5. Pantropical Jumping Spider Plexippus paykulli2
  6. Seabird soft tick Alectorobius capensis2

Reptiles

  1. Green Sea Turtle Chelonia mydas102
  2. Mourning Gecko Lepidodactylus lugubris15
  3. Asian House Gecko Hemidactylus frenatus12
  4. Hawksbill Sea Turtle Eretmochelys imbricata10
  5. Mottled Snake-eyed Skink Cryptoblepharus poecilopleurus6

Fish

  1. Bluefin Trevally Caranx melampygus67
  2. Blacktail Wrasse Thalassoma ballieui52
  3. Blackstripe Coris Coris flavovittata49
  4. Hawaiian Convict Surgeonfish Acanthurus sandvicensis47
  5. Milletseed Butterflyfish Chaetodon miliaris42
  6. Giant Trevally Caranx ignobilis42
  7. Abbott's Moray Gymnothorax eurostus36
  8. Spectacled Parrotfish Chlorurus perspicillatus34
  9. Saddle Wrasse Thalassoma duperrey32
  10. Manybar Goatfish Parupeneus multifasciatus32

Mollusks

  1. Imperial Nudibranch Hypselodoris imperialis30
  2. Day Octopus Octopus cyanea29
  3. Hypselodoris insulana18
  4. Reticulated Sap Sucking Slug Elysia rufescens10
  5. Reticulated Venus Periglypta reticulata10
  6. Elysia marginata10
  7. Hexabranchus sandwichensis10
  8. Blunt-end Seahare Dolabella auricularia9
  9. Leopard Cone Conus leopardus8
  10. Violet Sea Snail Janthina janthina8

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

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Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. KnowKi is not affiliated with NOAA or any area's managers. Free, with no ads, no account and no purchases.