"Earth Day every day and our daily sweat"
By Virginie Ternisien
The weather has been pretty variable. We had a few hot days approaching 80 degrees, others with NNE wind at a maximum force of 21 mph. It brought cold mornings (mid 60ish degrees) but thankfully the sun would warm up during the afternoon to mid 70s degrees. These coldish temperatures were actually a treat when working in dense field of Naupaka (Scaevola taccada, a native shrub). Well, not so much later on, for the outdoor shower, which was for sure reviving! It rained once which gave us the opportunity to complete some maintenance such as cleaning the water catchments (for our facilities and for the Laysan ducks), entering data (always always always!) and work in the nursery. We planted native Akulikuli (Sesuvium portulacastrum) and Koali ‘Awa (Ipomea indica) cuttings in pots, transferred some Popolo (Solanum nelsonii) from a flat seed tray to individual deep pots, broadcasted native seeds of Lepturus repens in the Camp RA, which were previously collected at Northeast Point RA, among other plant activities.
Each week, we monitor the population of the endangered Laysan ducks at the seeps and guzzlers while looking for potential mosquito adults and larvae. Recently, the water sources were treated to control mosquitoes. No mosquitoes have been detected since, fingers crossed! Once a week, we conduct Hawaiian monk seal and shorebird surveys. Common shorebirds include Pacific golden plovers, Ruddy turnstones, Bristle-thighed curlews and Wandering tattlers. We took GPS waypoints and marked nest sites of Masked and Brown Boobies and Grey-Backed Terns as they were discovered during RA treatment.The island is currently a nursery station and thus the cutest place ever! Some species are laying eggs (such as the Sooty terns and Black noodies) while others have downy chicks (Red-tailed tropique birds, Brown boobies), partially feathered chicks (Laysan and Black-Footed Albatross, White terns) and already juveniles (Red-footed boobies).The Albatross chicks, the most abundant on the island, seem lately to feel more adventurous which get them in trouble sometimes. So many have been rescued from being caught in burrows (holes made by underground nesting birds such as the Bonin petrels) or one came too close to the duck guzzler… Poor cuties! Not to mention also that we have currently 11 endangered Hawaiian Monk seal moms and their pups at our beaches! In addition, we are (impatiently!) waiting for new broods from the founding Laysan ducks. Of course, you would be so tempted to stare closely at these cuties for hours, right? However, during the crucial time of parenting, human disturbance is reduced to a minimum. If flushed, some bird species won’t return to their eggs, or break it accidentally, or the Iwa (Great Frigatebirds) would come and steal nesting materials dropping the eggs, or they can even eat the downy chicks. Each disturbance we could create is recorded in our data log and avoided at all costs. Binoculars and long zoom lens camera get very handy! While at the pier for some leisure time, we observed one threatened Green sea turtle, sharks (often Black-tip), Spotted eagle rays and once lots of Man-of-War jelly fish (yikes!).
Besides this busy schedule, we do find some time to relax and these moments even taste better that way: reading, writing, watching movies, listening to music, yoga, cooking, beach (if no seals!), sleeping and yes house tasks we can finally achieve! I am sure you would like to know more in detail about what I just listed above: the plants, the animals, our lifestyle on the Green Island without mentioning our unique sunrises and sunsets and night skies full of stars, powered by the moon.The next posts will be dedicated to those themes. We have five months to go, thank you for following our journey!
Mahalo!
Virginie
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