The forested hill to the left of Maunaulu is Pu‘uhuluhulu (shaggy hill), a volcanic cone that predates the new lava shield by over 500 years. Pu‘uhuluhulu is a pile of cinder, spatter, and ash that rained down from high, gascharged fountains. With no flows to carry away the ejecta, each fountain added to its height. Pu‘uhuluhulu stood nearly 300 feet (91 m) above the surrounding land when the eruption first began. By the time the eruption ended, this cone was dwarfed by its new neighbor, Maunaulu. If Maunaulu lava shield continued to erupt and grow, it may have completely surrounded and buried the older Pu‘uhuluhulu cone.

The crater inside this old cone protects rare native plants. Feral pigs ravage the nearby forests but can’t get into this crater, due to its steep inner walls. Treasures like ʻōhā—rare outside the crater—find sanctuary within its protective walls. Since the Maunaulu eruption, Puʻuhuluhulu has become an important source of life for new plants to become established on the fresh lava.

Pelehonuamea, a Hawaiian volcanic diety, is a force of both destruction and creation of the land. However it is the great Lono (god of vitality) and her sister Hiʻiakaikapoliopele (Hiʻiaka in the bosom of Pele) who bring new life to the barren flows.