Current conditions at Rabbit Island

Beach & Nearshore

No conditions available

Shoreline conditions do not apply to this location.
Primarily for beachgoers and surfers

Offshore

High Hazard

Conditions are hazardous. Kayakers and users of other unpowered craft are encouraged to stay out of the ocean.
Primarily for boaters and kayakers
Learn more about these rating signs and alerts. Ratings updated Monday, March 27, 2023 - 7:15pm

Weather

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79°F
Mostly Cloudy
Winds Northwest at 5.8 MPH (5 KT)

Surf Forecast (Official)

Recommended Activities

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Beach ID: 49

Not lifeguarded.

Background

Two islands lie offshore Kaupo Beach Park. Manana, the larger island, is popularly known as Rabbit Island. In the late l880s John Cummins, the first owner of Waimanalo Plantation, released rabbits on the island and a colony of them survived for many years. The last of the rabbits were removed in the early 1970s. Rabbit Island's Hawaiian name, Manana, means to stretch out or to protrude. Kaohikaʻipu, or Black Rock, is the smaller island adjacent to Manana.

Manana and Kaohikaʻipu Islands are part of the HawaiʻI State Seabird Sanctuary, where landings are prohibited without a permit. Manana is a volcanic crater, its floor honeycombed with the nesting burrows of wedge-tailed shearwaters. Many other sea birds nest on both islands. A surf site called Rabbit Island breaks on a shallow reef at the north end of Manana.

This description is from John R. K. Clark's Beaches Series: Beaches of Oʻahu, Beaches of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, Beaches of Maui County, and Beaches of the Big Island published and available for purchase from the University of Hawaiʻi Press. We thank John R. K. Clark for providing beach descriptions for use on this site.
21.327165867000, -157.656656127500