Dr. Hanna Mounce to speak at the Friends of Haleakala National Park annual meeting
Dr. Hanna Mounce, manager of the Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project, will speak at the annual meeting of the Friends of Haleakalā National Park on Thursday, April 25. The public is invited to the program at 7:00 pm, with talk-story and membership information at 6:30, in the Ka’aike Building, UH Maui College, next to the large parking lot off Wahinepio St.
Her talk, “Alalā Recovery Maui Nui,” will explain plans to release the endemic and very endangered alalā, or Hawaiian crow, back into the wild and what the project’s challenges and progress have been to date. Alalā are extinct in the wild with less than 115 birds held in captivity.
Dr. Mounce develops and imple- ments research and recovery actions for several Hawaiian forest bird spe- cies. She developed a passion for is- land ecosystems at an early age and has dedicated her career to working to prevent the extinction of Maui’s forest birds. She joined Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project (MFBRP) in 2006, completed her doctorate in biodiversity conservation at the University of Kent, UK, and then spearheaded the founding of Na Koa Manu Conservation in 2015. Other projects she coordinates include endangered kiwikiu recovery, ‘ākohekohe translocation, and mosquito control, as the avian malaria the mosquitos carry is decimating the native forest birds.
New members may join the Friends at the meeting, and FHNP officers will give updates on the work of the organization after the program. Optional donations of healthy staple foods will be collected at the door for the Maui Food Bank’s “Give Healthy” campaign.