Maui

===Natural history===
Maui is a leading whale-watching center in the Hawaiian Islands due to [[humpback whale]]s wintering in the sheltered [[Channels of the Hawaiian Islands|{{okina}}Au{{okina}}au Channel]] between the islands of Maui county. The whales migrate approximately {{cvt|3500|mi|km}} from [[Alaska]]n waters each autumn and spend the winter months mating and birthing in the warm waters off Maui, with most leaving by the end of April. The whales are typically sighted in pods: small groups of several adults, or groups of a mother, her calf, and a few suitors. Humpbacks are an [[endangered species]] protected by U.S. federal and Hawai{{okina}}i state law. There are estimated to be about 22,000 humpbacks in the North Pacific.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://iwc.int/estimate |title=Population Estimates |website=iwc.int |access-date=19 November 2017 |archive-date=17 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180117065743/https://iwc.int/estimate |url-status=live }}</ref> Although Maui's Humpback face many dangers, due to pollution, high-speed commercial vessels, and military sonar testing, their numbers have increased rapidly in recent years, estimated at 7% growth per year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pacificwhale.org/news/news_detail.php?id=286 |title=Record Number of Whales Sighted During Great Whale Count |publisher=pacificwhale.org |access-date=2009-05-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225114415/http://www.pacificwhale.org/news/news_detail.php?id=286 |archive-date=2012-02-25 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Maui is home to a large [[Hawaiian tropical rainforests|rainforest]] on the northeastern flanks of Haleakalā, which serves as the [[drainage basin]] for the rest of the island. The extremely difficult terrain has prevented the exploitation of much of the forest.

Agricultural and coastal industrial land use has hurt much of Maui's coastal regions. Many of Maui's extraordinary [[coral reef]]s have been damaged by pollution, run-off, and tourism, although finding sea turtles, dolphins, and Hawaii's celebrated tropical fish, is still common. Leeward Maui used to boast a vibrant dry 'cloud forest' as well but this was destroyed by human activities over the last three hundred years.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tourmaui.com/trees-of-maui-sandalwood/ |title=History of Sandalwood on Maui |date=30 June 2016 |publisher=tourmaui.com |access-date=28 April 2015 |archive-date=8 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308020906/http://www.tourmaui.com/trees-of-maui-sandalwood/ |url-status=live }}</ref>