The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hold two meetings next week on the Big Island to discuss a proposal to remove the Hawaiian hawk, or 'io, from the federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife.

The meetings will be 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Pu'ueo Community Center in Hilo and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Yano Hall in Captain Cook.

The 'io is a small, broad-winged hawk native to Hawai'i. It is the only member of the hawk family that nests and resides in the Islands.

It was listed as endangered in 1967.

Thanks to recovery and conservation efforts, the 'io is now found throughout the Big Island and has maintained a stable population for a least 20 years, according to the federal agency. It is nesting and foraging successfully in both native and altered habitats and has benefited from large areas of protected forest, the service said.

Researchers estimate the total population at 3,000 birds.

The service has developed a draft post-delisting monitoring plan in coordination with the state, the National Park Service and U.S. Geological Survey Biological Resources Discipline.

The Endangered Species Act requires biological monitoring of a species for a minimum of five years following delisting. The monitoring plan verifies that a delisted species remains secure from the risk of extinction after it has been removed from the protections provided by the Endangered Species Act.

The service proposes monitoring the Hawaiian hawk via islandwide surveys every five years for a period of 20 years from 2012 to 2032.

The hawk would remain protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, a federal law that prohibits the killing, selling or harming of migratory birds, their nests or eggs.

In traditional Hawaiian culture, the 'io is believed to be an 'aumakua, a family or personal god in the shape of an animal. The birds also are considered a symbol of Hawaiian royalty because of their lofty flight.

Copies of the proposed rule and monitoring plan can be downloaded at the Fish and Wildlife Service's Web site at www.fws.gov/pacificislands.