The Baldwin Family & Members of the Community Release Nene Goslings & Foster Parent
Governor Linda Lingle Established Sunday, 9/26, as “Nene Recognition Day” for Hawaii
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Makawao, Maui, Hawaii (September 29, 2004) – Piiholo Ranch, Upcountry Maui’s family-owned and operated horseback riding company and working cattle ranch, recently hosted a blessing for family, friends and community members to celebrate the introduction of five nenes, four goslings and one foster parent, to their land. The timing coincides with Governor Linda Lingle’s recent proclamation of Sunday, 9/26, as the second annual “Nene Recognition Day” in the state of Hawaii.
Peter Baldwin, owner of Piiholo Ranch, comments, “The nene are treasured by our island, and my family and I are committed to enhancing their population. We are happy to maintain a breeding habitat for nene at Piiholo Ranch, and expect this place to be a permanent home for them.”
Safe Harbor Agreements between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) and landowners encourage voluntary management for listed species on private lands while providing assurances to landowners that no additional, future regulatory restrictions will be imposed. In this case, the Baldwin family has made a ten-year commitment to maintain or improve a nene habitat on their ranch, establish and maintain a nene release pen, control predators around the release pen and plant native plant species known to be nene food sources in several areas of the ranch.
“Whenever we add more individuals of an endangered species to the wild population it is a historic event and brings the species one, small step closer to recovery,” said Jeff Newman, acting field supervisor for the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Pacific Islands Office. “Piiholo Ranch is a prime example how concerned private landowners can work together with government agencies to protect and manage Hawaii’s endangered and threatened wildlife.”
Chairperson of Department of Land and Natural Resources, Peter Young, commented, “We view this partnership as an excellent opportunity for collaboration with a private land owner and agency partner to help recover our state’s endangered species.”
At Piiholo Ranch, as well as a few other selected locations in the state, DLNR has conducted the actual reintroduction of nene raised at the Maui Bird Conservation Center. The flight feathers of the five nenes at Piiholo Ranch were trimmed to prevent them from flying out of the release pen prior to their next molt. This is done for several reasons, primarily to protect them from predators and to encourage their imprinting on the area. Piiholo Ranch will provide food and water to the nene while they are in the release pen, and will assist DLNR in monitoring the population on the ranch. The pen will be used for initial releases of the goslings and will be available in subsequent years as a predator-protected area for future generations to raise young.
FACT SHEET
About Safe Harbor Agreements
The text of the Piiholo Ranch Safe Harbor Agreement is available for review on the internet at http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dofaw/pubs/index.html, the State Main Library, the Makawao Public Library, and the Division of Forestry and Wildlife offices in Kahului and Honolulu.
About Nene Recognition Day
Schoolchildren and adults alike celebrated the state bird of Hawaii and one of the world’s most endangered waterfowl during the Second Annual Nene Recognition Day on Sunday, September 26. Children across the state will participate in a contest that encourages creativity and promotes awareness for the nene. Activities will include coloring, art, and essay contests for grades ranging from kindergarten through high school.
About Piiholo Ranch
There are many horseback trail rides on Maui, but only one offers the traditional Hawaiian paniolo cowboy adventure. Now you can live the legacy of the Baldwin family, who has ranched on Maui for six generations. Piiholo Ranch borders the paniolo town, Makawao (Hawaiian for beginning of the rainforest), and lies at the edge of the Upcountry rainforest. Owned and operated by Peter Baldwin and his family, Piiholo Ranch horseback rides will share the family’s experience in cattle ranching and caring for the land for more than one hundred years.
About Nene
Nene probably were extirpated on Maui by the end of the 19th century, and today are found primarily within the boundaries of Haleakala National Park where reintroduction efforts began in 1962. DLNR is establishing a population in West Maui through a reintroduction program at Hana’ula which began in 1995. Biologists anticipate that the additional available habitat on Piiholo Ranch will provide the core areas for nene to become established with a long term recovery goal of 75 nene on the ranch.
Information from FWS news release for revised Nene Recovery Plan posted on September 24, 2004: Listed as endangered in 1967, the nene (Branta sandvicensis) is the eighth most endangered waterfowl species in the world. It shares a common ancestry with the Canada goose. Unique to the Hawaiian Islands, this medium-sized goose grows up to 27 inches tall and 5.5 pounds in weight. Throughout the centuries, the nene has adapted to terrestrial life with greatly reduced webbing between the toes, smaller wings and larger hind legs. Both sexes have similar plumage. The crown and back of the neck are black, with a bright, cream-colored cheek patch. The sides of the neck are beige with deep furrows that are unique among waterfowl. The bill, legs, feet and tail feathers are black. The back and upper wing areas are gray-brown with lighter-colored edges that give a scaled or barred appearance. The sides, chest and belly appear less scaled with a lighter gray-brown color. The rump is pure white, and the eyes are a deep chestnut brown.
The nene has the longest nesting season reported for wild geese, with eggs being reported during all months except May, June and July. However, most of the birds in the wild nest between October and March. The nene nests on the ground, laying from three to five eggs on average; goslings typically remain with their parents until the next breeding season. In 1952, the remaining nene population was estimated to be about 30 birds. Current estimates are around 1,300 birds in different populations on the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, and Kauai. Current statewide distribution has been determined largely by the locations of release sites of captive-bred birds. Almost half of the statewide population exists on Kauai, probably due to the fact that mongoose are not known to be established on the island. Other factors that may attribute to the success of nene on Kauai are an active predator control program near nesting sites and effective fencing, greater availability of lowland sites and irrigation of areas around Kilauea Point, which may attract nesting birds and increase gosling survival.
The historic distribution of the nene (after 1778) reflects only a portion of the range the bird once occupied. It is likely they utilized grasslands, grassy shrublands and dryland forest. Nene currently inhabit elevations ranging from sea level to 8,000 feet that typically receive less than 90 inches of annual rainfall. Habitat types used by the bird currently vary greatly from coastal dune vegetation and nonnative grasslands to sparsely vegetated lava flows and open native and nonnative alpine communities.
Many factors have contributed to the decline of the nene. The first humans to Hawaii exploited nene for food, destroyed lowland habitat and introduced the first mammalian predators such as Polynesian rats, pigs and dogs. The exploitation of the bird for food, by Hawaiians and non-Polynesian settlers, is believed to have been responsible for substantial population declines in lowland areas. Hunting was a major limiting factor until a hunting ban was passed and enforced in 1907. Currently, it is believed that the following threats are major obstacles to nene recovery: predation, nutrition deficiency due to habitat degradation, lack of lowland habitat, human-caused disturbance and mortality, behavioral problems and inbreeding depression. Predation by nonnative species including mongoose, cats, and rats is believed to be the greatest threat to the species.
Media Contact:
Ashley Stepanek
Fresh Media
Office: 808-661-8005
Cell: 808-280-7855
ashley-s@hawaii.rr.com
Media Contact:
Deborah Ward
Department of Land and Natural Resources
Public Information Office
Office: 808-587-0320
|
