New online field trips are being offered this year to remote seabird sanctuaries: Lehua Island, 19 miles west of Kauaʻi, and Hōlanikū, also known as Kure Atoll, 1,400 miles away at the furthest reaches of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.
The virtual excursions use 360-degree photos and videos as well as interviews with field biologists and cultural practitioners, to provide educational exploration of otherwise inaccessible locations.
These online interactive resources were produced by Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife as part of the “Year of Our Coastal Kuleana,” a celebration of coastal ecosystems proclaimed earlier this year by Hawaiʻi Gov. Josh Green.
“Our virtual field trips are designed with classrooms in mind,” said Division of Forestry and Wildlife Education Specialist Josh Atwood in a release about the online tours. “We want to help people connect with remote natural areas, see the important work done by conservation professionals and be inspired to help protect Hawaiʻi.”
The Lehua Island online field trip explores the 284-acre crescent island just north of Niʻihau and follows a team of biologists from Kauaʻi Endangered Seabird Recovery Project.
As students navigate around the island, clickable hot spots introduce native seabirds and plants.
Kauaʻi Endangered Seabird Recovery Project staff demonstrate the tools and strategies used to protect this remote seabird sanctuary. The field trip also tells the remarkable story of the restoration of the seabird sanctuary through the removal of invasive rats and rabbits.
The Hōlanikū online field trip explores an even more remote seabird sanctuary at the northwest edge of the Hawaiian archipelago.
Courtesy Image: Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources- Courtesy Image: Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources
- Courtesy Image: Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources
Students meet biologists from Division of Forestry and Wildlife and the Kure Atoll Conservancy, who share their efforts to provide safe nesting habitat for seabirds including mōlī, or Laysan albatross; kaʻupu, or black-footed albatross; koloa pōhaka, Laysan duck; and more.
Find the online field trips, as well as other events and activities planned in celebration of “Year of Our Coastal Kuleana” at the Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources website.
