News and Announcements

Latest news, upcoming event information, announcements from TWS Hawaii
Oct 24
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Join us in TNC’s Waikamoi Preserve on Maui!

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The Wildlife Society Hawaii Chapter and The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii are coming together to provide an amazing opportunity for TWS Hawaii members.

We will have three events on Maui that will give our members an opportunity to learn more about TNC Maui, the native ecosystems and wildlife of Maui, and the management that is being done to protect it. Staff from The Nature Conservancy and Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project will be at the events to share their knowledge.
 
December 2nd, 2023 and January 20th, 2024. We will be meeting in Upcountry Maui to do some invasive species control. Get ready to get your hands muddy. We’ll be doing some ginger control. 
 
October 29th. We will be meeting in Upcountry Maui. We will enter TNC’s Waikamoi Preserve and hike about 5 miles round trip. This is a steep hike- with both incline and decline- at high elevation. We will check out native and nonnative birds, plants, and more while on this hike and talk about some of the management initiatives that have occurred and are occurring in order to protect this special area. 
 
We suggest membership and a donation to support the event and more events like this in the future.
 
To sign up, fill out this form!
Jan 26
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Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge Community Work Day

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We have an excellent opportunity coming up on the island of Kaua’i with Nā Kiaʻi Nihokū at Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge. Come get to know the unique landscape of Nihokū while learning more about this storied, celebrated, and protected coastal crater hill. 

Nā Kiaʻi Nihokū (https://www.fws.gov/refuge/kilauea-point) is hosting TWS Hawaii for a hike and work day at Nihokū.
 
On Saturday, February 11th, we will do a hike and some restoration work at Nihokū–the coastal crater hill within Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge that gives Kilauea town its namesake. This is a moderate to easy quarter-mile hike with both incline and decline at about 500ft elevation with sweeping views of the north shore coastline. We will check out native and non-native birds, and plants as well as share the story of community engagement within wilderness management that has occurred and is occurring in order to protect this special area. 
 
There is a maximum capacity of 25 people and once it is full, we will start a waitlist and let you know if spaces open. If there is enough interest, we will create another event for another time.
 
A confirmation email with more information will be sent after filling out this form. Sign up here.
 
Nov 09
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Help TWS-HI at Waikamoi Nature Preserve in November and December!

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The Wildlife Society Hawaii Chapter and The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii (https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/waikamoi/) are coming together to provide an amazing opportunity for TWS Hawaii members.

We will have two events on Maui that will give our members an opportunity to learn more about TNC Maui, the native ecosystems and wildlife of Maui, and the management that is being done to protect it. Staff from The Nature Conservancy and Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project will be at the events to share their knowledge.
 
November 19th, all day. We will be meeting in Upcountry Maui at 8am. After getting together gear and signing waivers, we will head up to TNC’s Waikamoi Preserve to do some invasive species control. Get ready to get your hands muddy. We’ll be doing some ginger control. 
 
December 3rd, all day. We will be meeting in Upcountry Maui at 8am. We will enter TNC’s Waikamoi Preserve and hike about 5 miles round trip. This is a steep hike- with both incline and decline- at high elevation. We will check out native and nonnative birds, plants, and more while on this hike and talk about some of the management initiatives that have occurred and are occurring in order to protect this special area.  
 
We suggest a $15 donation to support the event and more events like this in the future. 
 
Bring backpack with raingear, sun protection, layers, food, and water. Make sure you have sturdy footwear and wear long pants and sleeves. If you need to borrow anything please note in the form below. No off island gear will be allowed to prevent the spread of ROD. We will still be doing ROD prevention protocols on everything and want Maui gear to be clean and sprayed with 70% alcohol.
 
To sign up, fill out this form!
Feb 06
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The Wildlife Society & American Fisheries Society 2019 Joint Conference

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The Wildlife Society(TWS)/ American Fisheries Society (AFS) 2019 Joint Conference in Reno, Nevada, took place from September 29 through October 3, 2019, at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. Both professionals and students from Hawai‘i were present, including the Pulāma Lana‘i manager Rachel Sprague, who spoke about her experience with stakeholder engagement and conservation conflict resolutions. Four members from Dr. Price’s Wildlife Ecology Lab at the University of Hawai‘i-Mānoa: Chad Wilhite, Kūpa‘a Luat-Hueu, Derek Risch, and myself (Laura Luther), all presented on their research. Chad and Laura’s study species is the Hawaiian short-eared owl, or pueo (Asio flammeus sandwichensis), while Kūpa‘a and Derek’s focal species is the wild boar (Sus scrofa). It was also nice to connect with and share research results with Hawai‘i DLNR managers present from each island.

Some topics from the conference included:

  • Monarch butterfly radio tracking
  • Migratory caribou resource selection via camera collars
  • Humor in Hawaiian monk seal problems
  • Effects of spatial variation on the survival of cheetahs
  • Information on shifting fish distributions and how managers may need to adapt
  • Tracking highly migratory, long lived Cyprinids, Mahseer spp. in Bhutan. Seldom studied but threatened by hydropower dam construction and flow regulation
  • Understanding the impacts of global trade in reef-to-aquarium fishes

Chad Wilhite was pleasantly surprised to find the “Out in the Field” event at the conference: “It was extremely nice to see that the society is working to actively promote participation from historically underrepresented groups.” He also enjoyed connecting with researchers whose papers have guided him through his own academic endeavors.

There were inspiring synergies between AFS and TWS, with joint symposiums ranging from science communication to harvest management considerations. At a single time there were over 50 paper presentations happening, while the poster session included over 500 presenters—there was an abundance of experience and knowledge to gain through this collaboration among the fish and wildlife experts! I really enjoyed the variety of networking and social events, particularly the Women of Wildlife Reception.

Feb 10
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Wildlife Society Annual Meeting in Yosemite

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From February 4 – 8, 2019 we attended the 200th Wildlife Society Annual Meeting at Tenaya Lodge just outside Yosemite National Park, in beautiful Fish Camp California. The theme of the meeting was “Death And Taxas: Extinction and Speciation During the Anthropocene.”

It was a really fun and educational experience networking and learning from 600 + wildlife biologists from the western region and beyond. We attended lost of talks and sessions included a pre-conference fire ecology workshop. It was great to learn techniques and concerns from biologist and managers outside of Hawaii.  The highlight of the trip was probably the 5+ feet of snow dumped on us the first day of the conference and enjoying the sierras and Yosemite valley in the snow.  Very different from Hawaii weather!