Hawaii Wildlife Ecology Lab
808-956-7530
Approaches to optimal ungulate management strategies for recreational hunting and conservation purposes across the Hawaiian Islands
with Derek Risch, Project Manager, Kupaʻa Luat-Huʻeu graduate student, Dr. Mehana Vaughan (UH Manoa NREM),
Funding: Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife, McIntire-Stennis Forestry Program & Pittman Robertson
Population size, distribution, habitat use and nesting biology of Pueo, the Hawaiian Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus sandwichensis)
with Dr. Javier Cotín and Dr. Marie-Sophie Garcia-Heras, Postdoctoral Fellows and Olivia Wang, Kaleiheana-a-Pōhaku Stormcrow, Chad Wilhite and Laura Luther, graduate students
Funding: Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife, Natural Resources Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and United States Department of Agriculture
Long-term monitoring of 'Ua'u kani (Ardenna pacifica) fallout
with Jessica Idle, graduate student, Wade Naguwa, undergraduate student, and in collaboration with Dr. Kristen Harmon and Dr. Javier Cotin
Where Kāhuli Wander: a conservation introduction and post-release dispersal of Achatinella concavospira
Current research involves the analysis of Kāhuli conservation introductions, the release of Achatinella concavospira into protected areas outside of their historical range in anticipation of their original habitat becoming unsuitable in the next decade due to climate change. To inform management and recovery efforts for endangered Achatinella species, released snails are monitored and their dispersal tracked over several months.
with Dr. David R. Sischo (Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife), NREM graduate student Charlton Kūpa'a Hee
Funding: Hau'oli Mau Loa Foundation, Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife Snail Extinction Prevention Program
Decision Analysis for Conservation of Sensitive Species
With hundreds of species at risk and on the brink of extinction, conservation practitioners must decide where to focus effort and which conservation actions to implement given limited funds. Decision processes that aim to maximize conservation benefit for a given cost should address complementarity of actions to ensure that species in low-diversity habitats are not excluded, and both cost and effectiveness of different actions across taxonomic groups. To address this need we are using decision tools, such as Priority Threat Management, to guide resource allocation decisions for the conservation of biodiversity in the Hawaiian Islands. We work with species experts and conservation managers to determine key threats to sensitive species, management strategies to address key threats, and expected cost, feasibility, and benefit of management strategies. Results from the decision frameworks developed in our lab have helped decision makers to determine optimal gains in recovery across multiple taxonomic groups given costs and feasibility.
Funding: Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife
Decision Analysis and Trail Assessment for Conservation of Public Trails
In the Hawaiian Islands, the number of residents is around 1.5 million people, and visitor arrivals in 2019 (pre-pandemic) were around 10.5 million people (Hawai’i Tourism Authority 2020). Use of the public trail system has exponentially increased over time alongside the increasing resident and visitor populations and an increased focus on healthy living. However, less than one percent of the state’s budget is allocated to natural resource management, and only a small percentage of these funds go to trail maintenance, resulting in a decades-long decline in trail health alongside increased visitor and resident use. Thus, a gap exists between the funds needed to maintain trails, and the funds available to do so. As natural resource management challenges, such as extinction, invasive species, and erosion, stretch state resources thin, the Nā Ala Hele trails management administration within the Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources faces a crossroads in determining a sustainable future for our state’s public trails system. To address these challenges, we are working to identify an optimal set of actions to maintain multi-use trails, considering costs alongside social and environmental factors.
With Dr. Kristen Harmon (UH Mānoa), Derek Risch (UH Mānoa), Bill Stormont (DLNR Forestry and Wildlife), and Marigold Zoll (DLNR Forestry and Wildlife)
Nesting ecology, dispersal, and habitat use of Hawaiian waterbirds
Nesting Ecology, Dispersal, and Habitat Use of Hawaiian Waterbirds
with Dr. Kristen Harmon and graduate students Jessica Idle, Jaime Botet, and Taylor Shimabukuro
Funding: Hawai'i DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Marine Corps Base Hawai'i - Kaneohe Bay, Hau'oli Mau Loa Foundation, and He'eia National Estuarine Research Reserve
Symphony of the Hawaiian Birds: bringing wildlife conservation together with music, art, and education
with Dr. Takuma Itoh, Professor of Music, Composition, and Theory; Dr. Charlotte Frambaugh-Kritzer, Professor of Education; NREM graduate alumnus Rylen Nakama
symphonyofhawaiianbirds.com/
Past Research
Natural selection in the Anthropocene: under what conditions does the Wedge-tailed Shearwater (Ardenna pacifica) overcome light attraction during fledging?
with Brooke Friswold, graduate student, Jessica Idle, undergraduate student and the collaboration of Dr. Javier Cotín
WATER DIVERSIONS: ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES AND ECOLOGICAL TRADE-OFFS
with Kristen Corey, graduate student, Dr. Catherine Chan (UH Manoa NREM faculty), Dr. Yin-Phan Tsang (UH Manoa NREM faculty)
Funding: McIntire-Stennis Forestry Program, DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife
POPULATION GENETICS & BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY OF BAND-RUMPED STORM PETRELS IN HAWAIʻI
with Carmen Antaky, NREM graduate alumnus, Kauaʻi Endangered Seabird Recovery Project, Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project
Funding: US Fish & Wildlife Service, Hawaiʻi Audubon Society
Phylogeography of Hawaiian tree snails in the subfamily Achatinellinae
with Dr. Michael Hadfield, PBRC, Dr. Robert Toonen (UH Manoa HIMB), Dr. Zac Forsman (UH Manoa HIMB, Hawaii DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources), Dr. Ingrid Knapp (UH Manoa HIMB), NREM graduate student Philip Kitamura
Vulnerability of Hawaiian tree snails to climate change, and the potential for adaptation
with Dr. Michael Hadfield, (UH Manoa PBRC), Dr. Adam Vorsino (USFWS), Dr. David Sischo (Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife), Dr. Stephen Miller (USFWS)Funding: Oahu Army Natural Resources Program, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry & Wildlife