By Big
Island Now
October
10, 2018, 2:51 PM HST (Updated October 10, 2018, 2:53 PM)
A team
from the Biology Department and the Tropical Conservation Biology and
Environment Sciences program (TCBES) at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo (UHH)
is the latest recipient of support from the Disney Conservation Fund (DCF) for
its work to promote successful conservation of the critically endangered ʻAlalā
or Hawaiian Crow. The fund has been supporting local efforts around the world
aimed at saving wildlife, inspiring action and protecting the planet with more
than $75 million distributed to nonprofit organizations since 1995.
The
ʻAlalā has great cultural and ecological significance for the people of Hawai‘i
and the forests where they live and were once found. An endemic species that
was once found in forests throughout Hawai‘i, the ʻAlalā has been extinct in
the wild since 2002. Through intensive conservation efforts, 16 ʻAlalā raised in
captivity have been released into native forests, representing what
conservationists hope will be the start of a self-sustaining population of wild
ʻAlalā. Yet, it is unknown whether birds raised in captivity have or can learn
the social behaviors needed to live in the wild.
“Establishing
a self-sustaining wild population of ʻAlalā will require flexible and
innovative management strategies,” said Dr. Kristina Paxton, adjunct
assistant professor associated with the Listening Observatory for Hawaiian
Ecosystems (LOHE) at UHHS “Thanks to this $50,000 award from the Disney
Conservation Fund, we will be able to do intensive research in collaboration
with The ʻAlalā Project, a partnership between Hawai‘i Department of Land and
Natural Resources, San Diego Zoo Global, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, to
find out if captive reared ʻAlalā are developing new vocalizations as they
adapt to new situations encountered in the wild. This information will greatly
assist in the conservation efforts of ʻAlalā.”
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