Friends of Hakalau Forest 2024 Endowment Fundraising Campaign!

Our 2024 Endowment Campaign kicked off at the beginning of September with an ambitious goal to reach $2 million. As you know, the Endowment was created in 2015 and is administered by the Hawaii Community Foundation.

Thanks to your generous support and donations during these last few months, we’re thrilled to report that we have reached 93% of our goal as you can see from our thermometer. Our campaign ends on December 31st so we need your help over the next five weeks to raise the balance, $142,524. EVERY donation, big or small, helps.

The need has never been greater with avian diseases closing in on Hakalau Forest’s doorstep! We certainly appreciate the donations from 680+ donors over the past 10 years and we welcome any new donors as we approach the $2 million mark.

Our final goal is to raise $3.5 million which will enable us to allocate $140,000 each year in perpetuity to help save our endemic birds and plants in their habitats. Mahalo nui loa to everyone involved. Your gift will ensure our endangered birds have a future for generations to come. We are so very grateful for your continued support – please help us reach our 2024 GOAL!

SAVE THE DATE:

Annual Meeting January 25th at 10am HST

at the UH Hilo Science and Technology Building

Featuring: Conservation Bioacoustics: The Intersection of Research and Technology at Hakalau Forest NWR

by Dr. Pat Hart

More information in early January.

Refuge Update

USFWS

Aloha Friends of Hakalau Forest!

We’re excited to share updates on recent accomplishments and new developments at the Refuge as we continue our mission to protect and restore this unique ecosystem.

This quarter, the spotlight was on the Walk for the Wild event, which, thanks to the FOHF, successfully brought together community members in support of our conservation and restoration efforts. Together with the FOHF we welcomed over 400 visitors to the Refuge for this event. Mahalo to all the amazing volunteers who helped make it a success!

Two volunteer groups remain before we close out 2024 and we are looking ahead as we map out our work for the coming year. We will send out our call for 2025 volunteer groups on the 26th of November. Overall 2024 was a huge success as volunteers contributed over 6,000 individual service hours. Volunteers planted over 3,500 plants, constructed 4,000 Frost Protection Devices (FPD) meaning that every plant put in the ground has an FPD installed alongside it. Additionally, volunteers cleaned, sterilized, sorted, and stacked a seemingly never ending stream of 3 inch pots to be used by the nursery staff. 

Our team has been hard at work conducting weed and ungulate surveys. These essential efforts are critical to identifying and mitigating threats to the Refuge. The data collected during these surveys help us gauge how successful our efforts are and inform our management decisions as we move forward.

Mapping Old Growth Trees for Seed Collection

Eric, our Nursery Lead, coordinated a special “kupuna tree survey” this quarter, identifying founder populations of common and endangered species. This work is essential for future seed collection and supports our ongoing restoration efforts.The goal is to preserve and propagate as much genetic diversity as possible from these foundational trees, ensuring their legacy endures through our restoration projects.

Seedlings and Greenhouse Progress

Nursery production is gradually ramping up, with a focus on sowing seeds and occasional up-potting. We currently have several thousand seedlings in propagation which our volunteers will be planting in 2025.A new sprinkler system has been installed in the Laulima greenhouse, and we anticipate being fully operational in early December. Our next volunteer group will assist in assembling the greenhouse tables—mahalo for their support!

Welcoming New Team Members

We’re thrilled to welcome several new faces to the refuge:

• Sofia Suesue, a student at UH Hilo in the Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science (TCBES) Graduate Program, has joined our team as a Pathways hire. Her work will be primarily focused on Nene but will contribute to a variety of our biology projects at the refuge.
• Kea and Mel, our new Biological Technicians, hired under the native plant materials program with a focus on seed collection and seed banking in the event of fire.
• Melanie Franze, who recently completed her Kupu term at Hakalau Forest, was hired as one of our term Biological Technicians. Melanie’s dedication to habitat restoration has been invaluable, and we are excited to have her expertise on the team.
• Kealani Zayas joins us as the second term Biological Technician. Previously a Kupu intern at the Waimea State Tree Nursery, Kea is from Florida and holds a B.S. in conservation biology. She is passionate about seeds and native plants and spends her free time makai, exploring and looking for shells and nudibranchs.
• Zoe Naoumoff, our new Nursery and Restoration KUPU, hails from Florida and is in her second Kupu term, having previously served at Pu'u Wa'awa'a. Zoe is passionate about plants and aims to pursue a career in native plant nurseries.

Looking Ahead

The new fiscal year began on October 1, and we’re preparing for a new administration to take office in January. We’re excited for the opportunities and challenges ahead as we continue our mission to restore and protect Hakalau Forest.

Thank you, Friends, for your continued support of our Refuge and its incredible biodiversity. Together, we are making a difference!

Mahalo nui loa,

The Hakalau Forest NWR Team

Greenhouse Amazon Wishlist Update

MAHALO for your generosity! Between the new Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR Amazon Wish List and a very generous gift from two of our members, the Refuge has received the following:

• (5) 10' tree pruner poles
• (1) pack of insect traps
• (2) SmokeChaser Backpack Fire Pump sprayers
• (2) sets of Stackable Classifier Gold Prospecting Pans with Stainless Steel sifting pans
• (2) KitchenAid 9 cup food processor
• (5) Kinglake 1000 pcs 4-inch plant tags
• (2) Bonsai soil sifter set
• (1) EcoStake plant stakes, 4-feet, 50-pack
• (1) Magnetic mixer
• (1) Reshy Lab Scale
• (4) 5 gallon jugs
• (12) pairs of knee pads
• (1) 2-cup capacity pet food scoops
• (4) pack of storage heavy duty clip boards
• (1) galvanized feed scoop (6 quart)
• (3) 2.5 gallon water containers
• (1) Rooting gel, 2-pack
• (1) Garden cart, with tip-proof foot
• (3) yellow sticky traps
• (2) blue sticky traps
• (2) packs of colored tags
• (5) mixing bowls
• (2) Clonex 2-packs
• (2) pipettes packs
• (2) 3-packs of Rite in the Rain Notebooks

These items constitute several thousand dollars of value donated to the refuge! If you are interested in contributing directly to the plant restoration efforts, please see the button below for the most current list of needs for the Hakalau Forest NWR Greenhouse.

Walk for the Wild 2024 MAHALO!

On October 5th, about 450 “Walkers” were treated to a spectacularly clear day at the Pua 'Ākala Unit of the Hakalau Forest NWR. Over 90 volunteers and eight Natural History exhibitors arrived early to prepare for the Walkers.

The 90-plus volunteers, the Refuge Staff, and especially the volunteer team leaders made this Walk possible. Volunteer team leaders included: 

• Patty Kupchak - team leader
• Debbie Anderson – publicity
• Layne Yoshida and Jim Beets – gates
• Pippa Swannell, Jeff Jones and Don Weir – parking
• Steve Kendall – guides
• Beth De Young – merchandise sales
• Susan Miyasaka – volunteers
• Nikolai Braedt – boot cleaning
• Lisa Muehlstein –Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR display.

Over $6,500 in donations to use on the Refuge were received and the Friends will also receive a pro rata share of a National Walk For The Wild amplifier fund later in November.

Hawai'i Island Festival of Birds Mahalo

Mahalo to everyone who stopped by our FOHF booth at the Hawai'i Island Festival of Birds on October 26th! And big mahalo to the Education Committee (Lisa Muehlstein and Ann Tanimoto Johnson) for creating our new display board!

New trifold FOHF display board.

FOHF Unveiling a New 'Akiapōla'au Mural in Hilo

The Friends of Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge (FOHF) will be sponsoring a series of murals around Hawai’i Island over the next few years to raise awareness and inform our community about our endangered forest birds and plants at both the Hakalau and Kona Forest Units of the Refuge. 

In 2014, the Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project started this artistic movement with the well-know 9’ x 12’ Palila mural on Mamo Street in Downtown Hilo painted by local artist, Kathleen Kam with funds provided by the American Bird Conservancy. At the time, the goal of the mural was described as to inspire and educate the community about the palila and how the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) is preserving this special native bird and the māmane-naio forest they depend upon.

'Akiapōla'au image by Jack Jeffrey

The Akiapōlaʻau Mural, to help support DLNR’s Year of the Forest Birds, is being painted by Andrea Holmes, a young Texas muralist who specializes in birds. The endangered ʻAkiapōlaʻau will be installed at UH Hilo’s Science and Technology Building Thanksgiving week.

Holmes has a bachelor’s in arts and technology, has been a fulltime artist since 2017, and is the host of Birdtober (a daily art challenge during October where she creates two prompt lists – national and international birds - one for each day). Artists upload bird artwork, using any type of medium, to social media using the appropriate hashtag, e.g. #birdtober2024. Artists who complete the challenge of submitting artwork each day receive Birdtober stickers and postcards.

Andrea is perhaps even better known as a muralist specializing in birds. This year, she created a new mural project “Wings Across the World” with a goal of creating 100 bird murals around the world; 10 in Texas cities, 49 – one in each other state and 41 more across the world. FOHF contacted Andrea upon learning about the global project and formed a partnership, resulting in our upcoming ʻAkiapōlaʻau mural in Hilo.

In 2025 to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Refuge, FOHF will invite local artists to submit designs for our second bird mural on Hawaiʻi Island. One design will be selected to be painted on an appropriate wall, perhaps in Kailua-Kona. 

In the meantime, please help us welcome Andrea to Hilo and stop by to visit the Science and Technology Building. And, please follow our FOHF social media pages (FB, IG, TikTok) for daily updates on the mural’s installation.

Bret Nainoa Mossman in Audubon Magazine Fall 2024 Issue

Article: Gone, not forgotten

Check out the amazing Audubon Magazine article about FOHF's former Board Member Bret Nainoa Mossman, "This Man Is on a Quest to Document Hawaii’s Far-Flung Bird Specimens—and Maybe Even Bring Some Home"

Revival of the Jack Jeffrey Conservation Education Grant Fund

In 2009 the Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR instituted a program to honor Jack Jeffrey, long time Refuge Biologist at Hakalau Forest NWR. Jack retired in 2008 after a remarkable career in service to the Refuge, a career that he continues today as a renowned guide for birders who want to visit the Refuge. Upon Jack’s retirement, FOHF established the Jack Jeffrey Conservation Education Fund to promote conservation education and outreach at Hakalau Forest. The purpose of the grant was to “recognize a worthy individual or organization for their excellence in environmental education and/or conservation work relating to Hakalau Forest NWR and its surrounding ecosystems.” Past recipients have included a graduate student in the Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science Program at UH Hilo and ‘Imi Pono no Ka ‘Āina.

As the COVID 19 pandemic began in 2020 this program became dormant. However, we have not forgotten the value of this program and the Board of FOHF recently endorsed its revival. We have reformed a committee to oversee this effort and plan to make an award in the amount of $2,000 early next year. We look forward to seeing additional activity that addresses the critically important topic of conservation education around the Refuge. Stay tuned for more news as we reinitiate this work early next year.

New Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR Merchandise!

Just in! New Hakalau Forest merch available for the holidays! By request- dry fit shirts, stylish T- shirt designs, and hats! 

Order more than two items by Cyber Monday (December 2) and get a free Hakalau Forest Drawstring Backpack to wrap your gifts in.

To see the latest items click below for the online store! 

The Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR is a membership organization. Membership dues and donations to the Friends are our only source of funds allowing us to cover our expenses (for example this newsletter) and to make grants.