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Spectacular Surf Meeting with Harold K.L. Castle Foundation and The Nature Conservancy Critter of the Week - The Cattle Egret Interested in Counting Fish? READ THIS! |
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Shark's Cove
- Jan 28, 2012 |
MPW would like to thank the following people who helped make our volunteer outreach at Shark's Cove another success. Mahalo to:
Jim Peerson, Ruth Stoddard, Jim Parsons, John Cutting, Bob Leinau, Denise Antolini, Drew Wheeler, Jenny Yagodich and Shari Johnson | | |
Spectacular Surf
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 This Saturday was busy with visitors who came to see first hand the big surf that makes the North Shore famous.
After traveling over 1000 miles from storms in the North Pacific, waves reaching 20 feet high crashed into the rocks of Sharks Cove with incredible force, sending white water exploding into the air.
Pupukea MLCD is one of the few places where you can witness the raw power of the ocean from a close, yet safe distance and then after a short walk, watch some of the world's best surfers take on the infamous "Waimea Bay" wave.
Please remember to be careful around the ocean!
Photo by Drew Wheeler |
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Meeting with Harold K.L. Castle Foundation and The Nature Conservancy
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 MPW Board Members, staff, and volunteers met Saturday with Eric Co of the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation and Russell Amimoto of The Nature Conservancy.
This meeting introduced Eric to the outreach tent and other MPW programs such as the Ka Papa Kai program for area youth.
Grants from the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation have made it possible for MPW to exist and continue to help preserve the MLCD.
In Photo from left to right - Bob Leinau, Russell Amimoto, Jenny Yagodich, Eric Co, Denise Antolini (hidden), Jim Peerson, and John Cutting (facing away)
Photo by Drew Wheeler |
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Critter of the Week - The Cattle Egret
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 Introduced during the 1950s from Africa to control livestock pests, the Cattle Egret can be seen often sitting on or around livestock or following a city lawnmower alongside the road.
The egret in this photo was hunting in the tall grass of Sharks Cove, but just about every day, often in the morning, these birds fly into Waimea Valley and settle in the Great Bullrush ('aka'akai - Schoenoplectus lacustris), the reed grass that grows in the brackish water (waikai) of the Kamananui river estuary (muliwai).
They eat all sorts of native species, including baby 'alae 'ula birds, an endangered species found in Waimea's muliwai (nests are made in the bullrush).
So the Cattle Egret may be graceful, beautiful, and very photogenic, but these birds are an example of the detrimental effects of introduced species to Hawaii's fragile ecosystem.
References:
"A pocket Guide to Hawaii's Birds" by H Douglas Pratt.
David Orr and Jenny Yagodich of Waimea Valley.
Photo by Drew Wheeler |
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Interested in Counting Fish? READ THIS!
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 Malama Pupukea Waimea is introducing a new and improved biological monitoring program - more fun for our volunteers and more useful for assessing the health of the MLCD!
With the help of Russell Amimoto of The Nature Conservancy,
all volunteers who wish to participate in the "MPW Fish Counting" program this summer must be properly trained.
Even volunteers who have counted fish for MPW in past seasons must attend this training.
There will be four short training sessions beginning with the first session in late February or early March. Exact time and location are still being determined so watch for updates and check the website for more info.
Please contact drew@pupukeawaimea.org if you interested in this training. |
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