<Tr> <Th> VEI 4 </Th> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <P> Because of its position more than 3,000 kilometers (2,000 mi) from the nearest continental landmass, the island of Hawai ʻi is one of the most geographically isolated landmasses on Earth; this in turn has strongly influenced its ecology . The majority of the species present on the island are endemic to it and can be found nowhere else on Earth, the result of an isolated evolutionary lineage sheltered from external biotic influence; this makes its ecosystem vulnerable both to invasive species and human development, and an estimated third of the island's natural flora and fauna has already gone extinct . </P> <P> Kīlauea's ecological community is additionally threatened by the activity of the volcano itself; lava flows often overrun sections of the volcano's forests and burn them down, and volcanic ash distributed by explosive eruptions often smothers local plant life . Layers of carbonized organic material at the bottom of Kīlauea ash deposits are evidence of the many times the volcano has wrought destruction on its own ecosystem and that of its neighbor Mauna Loa, and parts of the volcano present a dichotomy between pristine montane forest and recently buried volcanic "deserts" yet to be recolonized . </P> <P> Kīlauea's bulk affects local climate conditions through the influence of trade winds coming predominately from the northeast, which, when squeezed upwards by the volcano's height, results in a moister windward side and a comparatively arid leeward flank . The volcano's ecology is further complicated by height, though not nearly as much as with its other, far taller neighbors, and by the local distribution of volcanic products, making for varied soil conditions . The northern part of Kīlauea is mostly below 1,000 m (3,281 ft) and receives more than 75 in (191 cm) mean annual rainfall, and can mostly be classified as a lowland wet community; farther south, the volcano has squeezed out much of the precipitation and receives less than 50 in (127 cm) mean annual rainfall, and is considered mostly a lowland dry environment . </P>

Where is volcano erupting in hawaii on map