Opossum found in shipping container raises concerns about growing threat in Hawaii

HONOLULU (KHON2) — An opossum discovered Tuesday in a shipping container was the second live opossum in a month found in Hawaii, raising the concerns about the growing threat of invasive species in our islands.

KHON2 raised the question, ‘what’s bringing the animal here and what’s being done to prevent them from ending up in Hawaii in the first place?’

“It was relatively small, so it’s probably a juvenile, I think male, so one-and-a-half to two-feet,” said Jonathan Ho, acting manager for the Plant Quarantine Branch at the State Department of Agriculture.

The four-legged stowaway captured Tuesday while small, poses a huge risk to the delicate ecosystem of the islands as omnivores and carriers of parasites.

The opossum was tested for rabies, as was the one caught last month on a window ledge of an office building in downtown Honolulu.

In all, there have been 7 opossums captured in Hawaii since 2005 and they’ve all been in the summer months.

Experts speculate the animals are looking for cooler shelter.

“Anecdotally it’s hot. They’re basically looking for shelter. Containers are open when these guys are doing their loading or it’s inside a pallet they get placed in and they get a trip to Hawaii,” said Ho.

This discovery highlights a broader issue of the inspection and prevention efforts in Hawaii.

The State has no jurisdiction on inspections outside of the islands, the sole responsibility of capturing these invasive species falls on the State DOAG. The challenge for inspectors are the same as with all State departments: not enough money or resources.

While the department’s general fund was given a significant boost of $19.2 million dollars for combating invasive species this past legislative session, with 4 to 5,000 containers arriving in Hawaii a week, and only around 65 inspectors statewide, the chances of these unwelcomed critters slipping through are real.

A consistent stream of funding is what Ho said would be more effective.

“Just trying to really manage constant pressure when you’re kind of year to year is really not an efficient way to really manage this problem, because it’s not going to stop. We’re going to continually import, you know, opossums or whatever is going to be in containers,” continued Ho.

For now, the Department of Agriculture says education is the easiest solution.

Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news

Anyone spotting an illegal animal should call the statewide pest hotline at 808-643-PEST (7378).