Queen's Surf Beach is located at the southern end of Waikiki from Ala Moana Boat Harbor to Leahi Crater. More specifically, it is located in Kapiolani Park. It is one of 9 beaches that protect Waikiki's shoreline. As a popular tourist destination, the beaches of Waikiki are frozen in time through shoreline hardening and beach nourishment to maintain their economic value. This picturesque beach is a human construct. Prior to modern development, this area was mostly agricultural land and it had a tendency to flood.
A once thriving coral reef ecosystem existed. Today, what remains is mostly bleached and replaced by a thriving invasive limu population. This limu population is so thick it blocks out the light from penetrating the water's surface and therefore stops zooxanthellae from producing chlorophyll leading to coral bleaching.
