WAILUA — Waimea High School science teacher Charles Folks and Commander Kacee Jossis of the Pacific Missile Range Facility were among the guests invited to the blessing and release of a trio of endangered Newell’s Shearwater birds, or ‘a‘o, at Lydgate Park in Wailua on Wednesday.
The blessing and release was coordinated by the Island School class of about 40 students, the Kaua‘i Endangered Seabird Recovery Project (KESRP), Save Our Shearwaters (SOS) and other community sponsors.
The event has become an annual rite of passage for both the students and for the seabirds, which have been rehabilitated by KESRP and SOS, according to the Department of Land and Natural Resources.
‘A‘o, born in the mountains of Kaua‘i and the other Hawaiian Islands, fledge during the “fall out” season that runs from Sept. 15 through Dec. 15, each year. The birds make their way to the ocean where they spend several years before returning to land to rest and lay their eggs in the mountains.
This preliminary introduction to the Newell’s Shearwater was provided by Jonny Shepherd of KESRP, who visited the Island School students in their classroom.
The DLNR said 90 percent of the global population of ‘a‘o is found on Kaua‘i, and the annual blessings and releases are one way to imprint on young minds, the importance of protecting and saving rare and native island species for today, and tomorrow.
“It’s important to protect the ‘a‘o because they are in danger of going extinct,” said Kalama Kealoha, one of the Island School students. “They’re only found on the Hawaiian Islands so if they’re extinct, they will be gone forever.”
The preliminary education was built upon during the release, when Jacqueline Nelson of the SOS allowed the students and guests a closer look at one of the three birds that were victims of falling out.
Falling out takes place after the birds on their exodus from the mountains to the sea are distracted by bright lights and fly around confused until they drop to the ground out of exhaustion, which leaves them vulnerable to predators .
The DLNR said approximately 90 birds have been rescued over the past two weeks. The birds were taken to SOS facilities for rehabilitation and health checks before being released.
“I’ve handled at least five birds in the last week,” Folks said. “Three birds in Waimea and one in Hanapepe — all dead. There was one bird on the side of the road, but prevailing traffic prevented me from getting to it. It probably got run over and died. This release brings aloha back to the birds.”
The DLNR said everyone should keep an eye out for fallen birds during this time of the year. If a bird is found, the bird should be carefully collected and placed in one of the aid stations that are located at all of the county’s fire stations. These birds are collected by the SOS staff for health checks, rehabilitation, and then are released.
