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Keauhou Bird Conservation Center

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Hawaii: Native Birds and Plants

By
Joshua Kramer
– June 9, 2011Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Hawaiian Birds, Plants, Uncategorized

Ohelo fruit is a native Hawaiian cranberry, favored by many frugivorous birds.

What is the connection between plants and birds? Plants can provide birds with shelter, nesting material and nest sites; food in the form of nectar, fruits and seeds, leaves. They can even harbor invertebrates. Birds, in return, protect plants from those invertebrates, assist in pollination, and disperse seeds. Sometimes, bird and plant species evolve “together” to the mutual benefit of both species, exemplified in Hawaii by the hoawa Pittosporum glabrum and its large seeds that lie within a tough outer shell. The `alala is the only known existing, native species that can deal with this robust fruit.

Susan Culliney, a masters student in collaboration with Colorado State University, has been studying `alala at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) to investigate their ecological relationships with a variety of native Hawaiian fruits, including hoawa. The study has focused on the `alala’s role in seed dispersal and germination, a role currently unfilled due to the `alala being extinct in the wild.

The MBCC greenhouse is bursting at the seams.

For many years now, the East Maui Irrigation Company has provided the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC) staff with access to protected forest, where we carefully select small branches of ohia Metrosideros polymorpha and koa Acacia koa for perching. We collect native berries for dietary enrichment, giving potential release birds the opportunity to develop a “search image” for native fruits that will benefit them when they are released.

Recently, we have also begun to look for ways to develop our own native plant resources. The MBCC already sustains a few native plants from which we have gathered seeds. We have also been fortunate enough to obtain seeds from other sources, including the KBCC. We are delighted to have the assistance and advice of Anna Palomino, a local nursery owner who recently developed a native plant nursery within walking distance of the MBCC. Anna is propagating some of the more difficult native plants and has generously offered an “exchange” program: we bring her compromised plants, such as plants that have spent time in `alala aviaries, and we receive healthy ones to put into use around the facility. With this plant swap, we hope to provide a more consistent supply of healthy plants for aviaries while reducing our losses.

From these small seedlings, large koa trees will rapidly grow.

We have always made attempts at native plant propagation, with varying degrees of success; however, within the past year, our efforts really began to focus on designating a small amount of time every week on plant propagation, despite jam-packed days filled with bird husbandry, facility maintenance, and aviary upkeep. The facility greenhouse is now literally overflowing with native plant seedlings, to the point where we are hoping for a second greenhouse to house our propagation efforts!

Thanks to the green thumbs of Research Associate Michelle Smith, 10 species of native plants have sprouted, including pilo Coprosma spp., hoawa, and aalii Dodonaea viscose. Over 100 koa seedlings are 4 to 6 inches tall, and our most recent success is the germination of ohia seeds. Eventually, these plants will be valuable in multiple facets: we will distribute appropriate plants to our captive flock for enrichment and foraging.

Other plants will be planted on facility grounds; over the long-term, the plants will provide perching material and food for our captive birds and, we hope, create an oasis of native plant life that will entice wild native birds, such as `amakihi Hemignathus virens, to utilize facility grounds as habitat. Finally, seedlings may act as educational tools during tours, which visitors will be able to take home to promote the preservation of Hawaiian plants and habitats, helping to spread the kokua and aloha.

Joshua Kramer is a senior research associate at the Maui Bird Conservation Center, managed by the San Diego Zoo. Read his previous post, Nene Visitors.

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`Alala Season Begins With Flurry

By
Lynne Neibaur and Richard Switzer
– June 3, 2011Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Hawaiian Birds, Uncategorized

The first 'alala chicks of the season are hungry!

It has been an amazing start to the 2011 `alala breeding season: we have already hatched eight healthy chicks at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center in Hawaii! This brings the entire `alala population to 84 birds, and we anticipate many more eggs to go into incubators soon. One of these chicks represents a significant achievement in itself: the 125th `alala to hatch since the inception of the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program in 1993. Also exciting is the fact that these chicks are offspring from three different females. Notably, one of these chicks represents the first great-grand-offspring of the `alala that hatched from the very last egg harvested from the wild in 1996 (known to his friends as Oli), which has resulted in the valuable genetic line descended from the wild Ko`ohena pair.

Hatching begins with the embryo pushing its beak into the air-cell at the blunt end of the egg. From that point we continue to monitor the embryo even more closely, in case it needs assistance through the hatching process. (For more details of the `alala hatching process, including video, see Hatching Additions to the `Alala Flock.) So far, three of the chicks required a certain degree of meticulous and painstaking assistance, since there was a chance that they may not have made it on their own.

Once a chick has hatched, we essentially switch off the lights and leave it for a few hours to regain its strength. However, we do remove its eggshell, which we keep for subsequent chromosomal analysis of the blood remnants in the membranes to ascertain the chick’s gender.

During the hatching process, the embryo retracts its yolk-sac through its umbilicus into its abdomen, resulting in a very round belly and yellow areas clearly visible through the skin of the abdominal wall. This yolk-sac provides a valuable source of nutrition in the early days of a chick’s life; it is essential that the chick metabolizes its yolk-sac to prevent this becoming stagnant and leading to a life-threatening infection. Consequently the chick’s first feeds are relatively small and feature, among other food items, bee larvae‑a great source of liquid to keep the chick well hydrated.

As the chick grows, we increase its food intake. Initially the diet also includes cricket guts and scrambled egg. As the chick develops, we start to incorporate papaya, whole cricket abdomens, pinky mice, and waxworms, which are some of the items they will eat as adults. Since `alala are a species which, as adults, regurgitate a cast (pellet) of indigestible food, we must be cautious to slowly introduce the chicks to food that is high in chitin, such as insect exoskeletons. Throughout the chick’s development, we calculate its daily food intake, as well as its consumption of calcium. We must be careful that the chick’s body mass does not exceed its skeletal development, particularly in the leg bones – the last thing we want is a chick with a broken leg or rickets.

So far, we have been lucky enough not to face any major problems in the rearing of these chicks. In the past, `alala have proven particularly challenging to rear in their first ten days of life, due to weakness, poor begging response, and a compromised immune system, possibly as a result of inbreeding depression. Only one chick has given us cause for concern when it went through a long period of failing to produce fecals. Like all good animal keepers, we closely monitor the quantity and quality of fecal production, since it provides a valuable insight into the health of the chick. After modifications to increase the proportion of moisture in the diet, enemas, and internal manipulation of the chick’s swollen back end, manual stimulation of the cloaca proved the key in encouraging the chick to pass the huge back-log of fecal material, and it has now returned to good health.

What these young `alala lack in the “cute and fluffy” factor (blind, mostly naked, with typically only a little down on their heads), they make up for in personality. At this age, they can seem to be a little moody, and even appear to “give some attitude” if they don’t want to be bothered. Equally, they can be highly vociferous when expecting to be fed. This means that working in our hand-rearing rooms presents a delightful experience. These are still early days for these chicks; we only begin to relax slightly when a chick is fledged and weaned. However, we are doing everything possible to ensure these chicks stay healthy, and equally crucially, we hope to have number of new additions to the flock soon. Keep your fingers crossed!

Lynne Neibaur is a senior research associate at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center.

Richard Switzer is the conservation program manager for the San Diego Zoo’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

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A Growing ‘Alala Flock

By
Sierra Browning
– May 20, 2011Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Hawaiian Birds, Uncategorized

An 'alala checks out her new neighbors.

Construction of the new `alala aviaries at the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC) was completed early this spring, thanks to the great work of our friends at Zoe Builders. (See post, New Homes for the Growing Flock).  In order to house the growing `alala flock, the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program (HEBCP) staff members are in the process of transferring juvenile and non-breeding `alala from our sister facility, the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) on the Big Island, over to MBCC.

Prior to installing the birds into their new aviaries, we have been busy making the aviaries into suitable homes for the new residents. This has entailed mounting perches, ropes, and browse tubes, and hanging large swinging perches from the ceilings. The aviary has natural earth floors, to which we are steadily adding grass, logs, koa trees, and other native plants to simulate natural elements of their wild environment.

The four new `alala aviary buildings at MBCC.

One of the advantages of the new aviaries’ design is that they are much more efficient for daily maintenance and cleaning; this reduces the amount of time we are inside the aviaries, so the birds spend less time interacting with us and more time interacting with each other. But we are able to make close observations of the birds through windows. Catch-up cages, known as “hack-boxes,” are a new feature for MBCC aviaries, having proven a valuable component of KBCC’s aviaries. We are in the process of conditioning the `alala to feel comfortable coming into the hack-boxes by placing their daily food pans inside, but eventually we hope to be able to train the birds to enter the hack-boxes in return for a reward.

KBCC Research Associate Rachel Kingsley arrives at Kahului airport, transporting an `alala to its new home in Maui.

Transferring a large number of `alala from the Big Island to Maui is a gradual process, because the birds are such a special consignment. Hawaiian Airlines very kindly allows the birds to travel in the cabin—perhaps the only birds in the world with airline corporate membership?! We are careful to ensure that the birds’ carrier boxes are protected with mosquito netting, which eliminates the ever-present risk of avian malaria. The flight is short, but the birds occasionally vocalize during the flight, which leads to some head-turns from fellow passengers—fortunately not enough shrieking to make ourselves unpopular…yet! We are always eager to explain what precious cargo they are carrying as well give a mini-history of the HEBCP and its goals with the endangered `alala.

Once the `alala arrive at the Kahului airport on Maui, they make the 30-minute drive up the slopes of Haleakala to the MBCC facility. The selection of which birds to place next door to specific neighbors is dependent on several factors including personality, age, sex, and behavioral history toward other birds. Upon arrival in their aviary, the carrier box is positioned so that the bird has a full view of its new home, and it is then released. After it has found a favored perch on which to settle, we observe the bird to ensure that it is still healthy after the journey. The new residents are checked frequently to ensure that they are adjusting well in their new abode.

After successfully relocating five `alala to MBCC this spring, we plan to transfer more juvenile and non-breeding `alala from KBCC over the next few months. Crucially, with this year’s breeding season underway, we have hopes to fill these aviaries with another productive year of youngsters.

Sierra Browning is an intern at the Maui Bird Conservation Center. Read her previous post, Interns Birding at 10,000 Feet.

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Endangered, Elusive Palila

By
Kyle Parsons
– March 9, 2011Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Hawaiian Birds, Projects in the Field, Uncategorized

A palila perches on a mamane tree at the KBCC.

Over the course of three weeks in January and February 2011, staff members from the San Diego Zoo’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program trekked up to Pu`u Mali, on the northern slopes of Mauna Kea (the tallest mountain on the Big Island of Hawaii). Our objective was to carry out some preliminary research on the small population of wild and released palila that reside at this location.

The palila Loxioides bailleui is one of the endangered Hawaiian honeycreeper species propagated at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC). The palila uses its strong, finch-like bill for opening mamane Sophora chrysophylla pods to obtain the immature seeds (its primary food source), and the species shares a close ecological relationship with the plant. The introduction of invasive ungulates such as goats, sheep, and cows ultimately led to the vast destruction of mamane forests, which in turn was responsible for decimating the palila population and reducing its range. Currently, the majority of the population is located on the south-western slope of Mauna Kea, but it is declining rapidly. According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the palila population has dropped from about 4,400 in 2003 to as low as 1,200 birds in 2010. Efforts to expand the palila population back to its historic range at Pu`u Mali have included experimental releases of captive-bred birds from KBCC, as well translocation of wild birds by the USGS.

A release aviary in the heart of palila habitat.

During our fieldwork, we had three goals:
1) To provide supplemental food at the former release site and then record data on the frequency of supplemental food consumption by both captive-released and wild palila. Since food abundance is a limiting factor in the palila distribution and population, we hoped that our previous release birds and even wild birds might return for supplemental food.
2) To conduct surveys of the Pu`u Mali area, in an attempt to get a population estimate of palila currently inhabiting the area, both captive-released and wild.
3) To conduct behavioral observations of wild palila with regard to habitat use, in the hope that this may provide additional, valuable information for application in captive management.

Research staff look for wild palila.

We spent a total of four hours each day observing the feeding stations and another four hours hiking around Pu`u Mali in search of both wild and release birds. Unfortunately, no palila were sighted at the feeding stations, and none of the supplemental food appeared to have been eaten. Luckily, there was a seasonal abundance of mamane pods, so perhaps the palila will be more eager to come in for supplemental food at other times of year, during mamane shortages. More discouraging was the result that scarcely any palila were even sighted at Pu`u Mali, with a maximum of four birds recorded by our team. Worst of all, we documented numerous signs of feral cats (another major threat to the palila) as well as signs of pigs, goats, and sheep.

The results from our field expedition seem to shed a grim light on the current status of the palila population at Pu`u Mali. Although the outcome was not what we would have wished, it did confirm that drastic conservation efforts are still needed to help save this unique bird species. Consequently, we feel even more motivated to continue our own palila recovery activities.

Kyle Parsons is a research associate at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center.

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New Homes for the Growing Flock

By
Michelle Smith
– November 1, 2010Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Conservation at the Zoo, Hawaiian Birds

Goodbye, old nene pens...

As previously reported, the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program has achieved notable success this year, increasing the `alala flock by 11 juveniles (see post, Record Breeding Season for ‘Alala)! With all these new youngsters cavorting around, and with further growth of the flock anticipated in future years, aviary space has become hot property. Consequently, construction of brand-new `alala aviaries began in late summer at the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC). Each building will have six aviaries, and with a potential of four buildings being completed over this winter, we will increase our holding capacity significantly.

As the `alala flock has grown over the past 15 years, the majority of new aviary infrastructure has been developed at our sister facility, the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center on the Big Island. Following the investment in new aviaries at MBCC, we will be able to increase our holding capacity and start to balance the `alala gene pool more equally between the two facilities. The new aviaries are being built primarily to house groups of youngsters and nonbreeders, allowing us to prioritize existing aviary space for breeding pairs.

... Hello, new 'alala aviaries!

As with all our `alala aviaries, the new ones will have a double layer of mesh on walls and roof. The fine, outer mesh is mosquito proof to protect the birds from harmful malaria-carrying mosquitoes. We will have the option of separating birds into individual units or opening hatch doors to allow birds to socialize with each other throughout the entire building. This will facilitate interactions between young birds and the development of their social skills, as well as maximize foraging opportunities that will stimulate the birds mentally and physically.

While we try to distance ourselves from the impressionable `alala, it is still important that all birds are monitored closely. The new aviaries will be built with small compartments called hack-boxes, where birds can be shifted for easy catch-up, weighing, or just a closer look. These provide a valuable tool for managing the birds with little contact with people, as well as minimizing the need to capture birds with a net.

A BIG thank you to all the donors who made this project possible. Approximately one third of the funding resulted from the Zoo’s popular fund-raising event, 2010’s Rendezvous In the Zoo (R*I*T*Z). The remainder has been allocated by our program partners, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and State of Hawaii Division of Forestry and Wildlife. We are tremendously grateful for all the support. We are also very grateful to Zoe Builders for all the excellent work they have been doing so far. It is very exciting to see the progress that has been made with the `alala program, and the expansion taking place is a great step forward.

Michelle Smith is a research associate at the Maui Bird Conservation Center. Read her previous post, First Hatch of Hawaiian Bird Breeding Season.

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Congresswoman Visits Bird Conservation Center

By
Jeremy Hodges
– October 19, 2010Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation, Hawaiian Birds

Jeremy shows Congresswoman Hirono a mural of native Hawaiian birds. Photo credit: Marvin Buenconsejo

On September 1, 2010, the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center was excited to welcome Congresswoman Mazie Hirono, Hawaii’s two-term representative to Congress. The congresswoman and her staff were on the Big Island to participate in the first-day-of-issue ceremony for the U.S. Postal Service’s Hawaiian Rain Forest stamp series.

Congresswoman Hirono and staff toured our breeding facility, including our aviaries holding the adult `alala, palila, Maui parrotbills, and puaiohi.

Last stop on the tour was our large `alala flight aviary, housing ten rambunctious `alala chicks that recently hatched during the summer of 2010. The visitors got an up-close look at the sometimes awkward antics of these entertaining youngsters as they develop their flying and social skills in this large aviary.

The staff of the KBCC would like to say a warm “mahalo” to Congresswoman Hirono and her staff for taking time out of their busy schedules to visit our facility and take an interest in our captive breeding programs for some of Hawaii’s most threatened birds.

Jeremy Hodges is the research coordinator at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center, operated by the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research. Read his previous post, Hatching Additions to ‘Alala Flock.

Read more Hawaii Endangered Bird Project posts….

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Corvid Cupid (part 2)

By
Lisa Komarcyzk
– June 7, 2010Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation at the Zoo, Hawaiian Birds

Be sure to read Corvid Cupid (part 1).

In order to juggle the socializations of breeding pairs of ‘alala (Hawaiian crows), we closely monitor the nesting activity of every breeding pair through CCTV and analysis of digital video recordings. We mostly monitor two types of behavior:

1) Cup forming: In preparation for the laying of a clutch of eggs, the female (and the male) shape the nesting material into a cup shape by dropping down into center of the nest, pushing out with their wings, and kicking back with their legs. As the laying of the first egg of a clutch becomes more imminent, the female will cup form with increasing frequency, then suddenly stop.

2) Sitting: Several days before the female lays her first egg of the clutch, she begins to show a progressive increase in sitting behavior. “Sitting” can best be described as the female resting her chest and abdomen on the base of the nest cup. This increase in sitting behavior coincides with the drop in cup-forming behavior, indicating to us that the first egg is imminent in the next few days. Once the female has eggs in the nest, this activity results in her brood patch being in contact with the eggs in the process of incubation.

By analyzing cup-forming and sitting behavior, we are able to make many valuable decisions that maximize the production of viable, fertile `alala eggs:

1) In the few incompatible pairs, we are able to predict the best time to temporarily socialize the pair to ensure that the female’s eggs will be fertilized.

2) In the compatible pairs where the male has a tendency to dominate the nest, we can predict when we should limit the time when the male has access to the female and her nest.

3) We always try to have the male separated from the female and the nest whenever there are eggs in the nest; the male’s over-interest can lead to damage of the eggs.

4) Occasionally, we have females who are known to be careless when incubating eggs, so we can watch the precise moment an egg is laid and pull the egg immediately for artificial incubation.

5) Whenever possible, we will always try to let the female incubate her clutch naturally for the first third of the incubation period. But while she is incubating these eggs, we monitor her closely to make sure that the percentage of her time spent sitting in the nest does not drop below 75 to 80 percent. If necessary, we can intervene to prevent eggs going cold.

Consequently, during the `alala breeding season, I spend almost my entire working day sitting in front of our `alala monitors, precisely charting the progress of each of the female’s nesting attempts. At the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program’s Keauhou Bird Conservation Center on the Big Island, I am ably supported by our recurring seasonal research associate, Jen Holler. Over at the program’s Maui Bird Conservation Center, the entire team chips in with the task of video review and behavioral analysis.

One of the great rewards of this intensive behavioral analysis is that we get to know each of the pairs intimately. Often we will be able to predict and watch the very moment that the female lays an egg. Of course, nothing beats the excitement of pulling a clutch of eggs after more than a week of natural incubation, carefully transporting them to the incubation room in their flask of warm millet, and then candling them to find out that they are fertile, with a healthy young embryo developing inside.

The graph below plots the nesting behavior of female `alala #125, named Loli’i, during the 2009 season, in which she laid three clutches of eggs. The pink line charts the cup forming in preparation for a clutch being laid. The blue line charts the female’s sitting/incubation behavior.

Lisa Komarczyk is a senior research associate for the San Diego Zoo’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

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‘Akepa: End of an Era (But What a Life!)

By
Richard Switzer
– July 9, 2009Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation at the Zoo, Hawaiian Birds

June 29, 2009, was a sad day for the staff of the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program: the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) experienced the death of the last remaining Hawaii ‘akepa Loxops coccineus in our care. (There are still ‘akepa in the wild.)

Although this marks the end of an era, it gave the program staff a chance to reflect on the remarkable life of this wonderful little bird. Affectionately known as “Studbook #3,” he hatched in May 1999 from an egg collected from the wild—one of the first potential founders of the captive ‘akepa flock. This means that he was just over 10 years old at the time of his death. Not bad for a little guy typically weighing in at 10.2 grams or 0.36 ounces. (When you weigh only 10 grams, those extra 0.2 grams count for a lot!) But this is relatively heavy compared to an ‘akepa chick, which weighs less than 1 gram (0.03 ounces) at hatch—one of the smallest passerine species to have been raised artificially from the egg, and quite a challenge for our team of hand-rearers (see post, A Small but Mighty Akepa).

Although Hawaii ‘akepa are not one of Hawaii’s most critically endangered bird species, having the ‘akepa flock in managed care has enabled us to develop and refine techniques that we hope to use in the recovery of their more endangered relatives within the subfamily of Hawaiian honeycreepers. The remainder of the managed-care ‘akepa flock were eventually released in 2007, in an initial attempt to reestablish a wild population in a restored patch of forest on the Big Island known as Kipuka 21 (see post, Kipuka 21: A New Home for Our Creeper and ‘Akepa). However, due to an accident in his aviary as a fledgling, which resulted in a major part of one of his legs being amputated, #3 was considered not fully equipped to lead a healthy life in the wild. Instead, he was destined for our education aviary.

It was amazing to see how he thrived in the captive environment on only one leg. “Thrived” is perhaps an understatement, because he was well known to crowds of school children visiting KBCC for his dazzling acrobatics, whether he was hanging upside-down from the roof of his aviary, or a flash of orange feathers hot on the pursuit of fruit flies and moths, only to elegantly alight on a perch with perfect balance on his one good leg (scoring 10 points from the Russian judge).

But ‘Akepa #3 is not the only bird that we believe has set a managed care longevity record for its species. Puaiohi #5, better known as Green Mama, is still going strong at the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC) despite veterinary issues, having hatched in 1996. Puaiohi #9 is only a year behind her and is still siring offspring this season at the age of 12. Not to be outdone, Palila #11 has been laying fertile eggs at the grand old age of 13, while 12-year-old Maui Parrotbill #1 continues to chase females less than half his age.

It is not unusual for tropical bird species to lead long lives, since they do not experience the extreme challenges that the seasons bring for birds in temperate climes. Very often their annual reproductive rate is low, too—the antithesis of “Live fast, die young.” Furthermore, with a consistent, healthy food supply and veterinary care, birds in managed care frequently have the ability to outlive their wild counterparts. Of course, these smaller passerines cannot compete with the larger species, such as corvids, which are renowned for their longevity. Consequently, the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program honors undoubtedly goes to Kalani, ‘alala studbook #27. At the ripe old age of 28, Kalani is the old man of the program. Although time has certainly mellowed him, he is reputed to be a grumpy old man, at that.

Richard Switzer is the Conservation Program Manager for the Institute for Conservation Research’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

Read Richard’s previous post, Naming ‘Alala Chicks.

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Naming ‘Alala Chicks

By
Richard Switzer
– June 29, 2009Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation at the Zoo, Hawaiian Birds

On Sunday, June 7, a group of students from Volcano School of Arts and Sciences, K’au High, and Pahala Elementary School were welcomed on a VIP visit to the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) on Hawaii. Four of the children were winners of a contest to name the four `alala youngsters successfully reared during the 2008 breeding season.

The contest was organized by Julie Williams, program coordinator and science resource teacher at Keakealani Outdoor Education Center, which drew in a large number of suggestions. The staff of the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program who had reared the chicks then selected the four names that best suited their individual corvid characters.

The names chosen were:
Iolana – to soar
Ikaika – strong
`Imi pono – to seek goodness
Po`noe – night mist

The worthy winners and their families were then led on a tour of KBCC, where they got the chance to encounter three resident `alala in our education aviary and see puaiohi chicks being hand-reared. Before leaving, each winner was presented with a photographic portrait of the `alala that had received the name they suggested.

Each year, several thousand school children visit KBCC, thanks to programs run by Keakealani Outdoor Education Center, Kamehameha Schools, and other organizations. The visits provide the students with a deeper appreciation for the unique diversity of Hawaiian birds, their habitats and their threats, as well as smiles and even occasional wide-eyed wonderment. We also hope that the students leave with the inspiration to protect and conserve Hawaii’s ecosystems in the future.

Richard Switzer is the conservation program manager for the San Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research, Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

Read previous posts, ‘Alala Takes Extraordinary Flight and Puaiohi: 300th Chick.

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16

Hawaii Bird Program: Open House

By
Sara Bebus
– April 21, 2009Posted in: Animals and Plants, Birds, Conservation at the Zoo, Hawaiian Birds

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Staff member Blake Jones shares why Hawaii birds are facing extinction.

The Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) welcomed visitors on December 6, 2008, to its annual open house. Over 80 people came to see some of the most endangered birds in the world and learn about our role in their recovery efforts.

The visitors learned from the staff about the main problems that are affecting the wild populations of endemic Hawaiian birds. These are introduced predators (mongoose, rats), introduced diseases (pox, malaria), and habitat degradation/loss (much from feral sheep, goats, and pigs).

There were thought to have been 140 species of birds in Hawaii when Europeans first arrived on the islands. Today, one-half of those are extinct. Of the remaining, about one-half are critically endangered, and many of them are presumed extinct.

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Staff member Kara Kneubuhler introduced a tour group to three rare ‘alala in the education aviary.

During the open house, our guests were given the opportunity to see Hawaiian crows (‘alala), Maui parrotbills, palila, puaiohi, Hawaiian ‘akepa, and elepaio. Even a pair of wild nene made an appearance.

Few people get a chance to see these birds. The ‘alala are extinct in the wild and there are currently 60 at the KBCC and our sister facility, the Maui Bird Conservation Center. The other species at the KBCC are critically endangered and live in hard-to-reach habitats. For example, Maui parrotbills are found in the remote high-elevation rain forests of Maui, and currently less than 500 remain. Puaiohi live in the Alaka’i Wilderness Preserve of Kauai and prefer habitat with steep ravines. The wild population may be as low as 200 individuals.

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The hand-rearing lab window prepared for viewing.

The visitors were given a look at our kitchen to see what ‘alala, palila, and puaiohi at the KBCC eat. The kitchen contains many foods you might find in your own kitchen, such as apples, melons, and frozen vegetables, and many others you wouldn’t want to find there, like frozen mice, mealworms, and dried fly pupae!

A video allowed the visitors to see some of our field activities including collecting eggs from wild nests and releasing hand-reared birds as well as parts of the incubation and hand-rearing process that very few get to witness. Everyone learned about the tremendous effort put into each egg and chick and got a peek into a hand-rearing lab through a viewing window.

The grand finale of the tour was the ‘Alala Education Aviary, which is home to three ‘alala (Lilinoe, Lokahi, and Kekoa). Many were surprised at how big the birds are; they are larger than many of the crows found on the mainland. Visitors were also even more surprised to find out that such a large animal only weighs about one pound.

We also had the pleasure of hosting four artists from the Big Island. Jack Jeffery, Emily Herb, Elizabeth Miller, and Margaret Barnaby displayed and sold their bird-inspired artwork as the open house guests snacked on refreshments and had the opportunity to ask questions and talk to the staff.

The open house not only gave the public a chance to learn about our facility, but it also gave our staff a chance to share our excitement and passion for conservation of the rare and wonderful birds we work with daily.

Sara Bebus is a research associate at the San Diego Zoo’s Keauhou Bird Conservation Center.

Visit the Hawaii Endangered Bird Program blog section

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