National Park Service Inventory & Monitoring U.S. Department of the Interior Pacific Island Network

N ISLA D NE IC TW IF O C R A K Pacific Island Network P

Quarterly Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network (PACN) N P g Inventory & Monitoring Program S rin Inv ito Quarterly ent Mon Oct. – Dec. 2009, Issue no. 18 ory & Outreach and Will American staff updates...2 Calendar...3 Featured staff...3 Memorial Park's Bird inventory...4 Google Earth™...4 birds become a faded Marine Fish Monitoring, memory? Plenty of Other Fish in the Sea?

Featured resource page 5

Haleakalä National Park, A Ranger's Perspective

Featured park pages 6-7

American Memorial Park's Bird Trouble

Although the birdlife on Saipan is currently stable, a sinister threat lays in waiting.

Critical issue page 8

Photo: white tern (Gygis alba)

Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network • October – December 2009, issue no. 18 National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Outreach and Staffing Update Featured Staff - Biotechs in W. Pacific Parks Pacific Island Network Outreach P.O. Box 52 Visa Vaivai is from American Samoa. She I&M participated in the annual KAHO kids We look forward to having her as part of the Chris Rillahan migrated to the warm 1 Crater Rim Drive - Qtrs 22 began conservation work when she was hired Hawai'i National Park, HI 96718 cultural festival in mid-November. This festival I&M team. waters of Guam in December 2008, just as by the American Samoan Department of Ma- gave us the opportunity to engage with scores of the winter chill settled on his hometown Hawaii-Pacific Islands Cooperative rine and Wildlife Resources as a clerk. She was W. Hawaii 4th and 5th graders about anchialine Anne Farahi has officially joined the NPS of Boston, Massachusetts. He decided to Ecosystem Studies Unit aquatic team as a biotech after a long stint as a hang up his drysuit, 7mm hood, and gloves only there for one day before she applied for a University of Hawaii at Manoa pools and the watershed. position with the Wildlife Division as a techni- 3190 Maile Way, St.John Hall #408 volunteer and temporary employee. after graduating from the University of New cian. It was there that she developed a passion Honolulu, HI 96822-2279 The PACN I&M program entered the social Hampshire, where he studied fish behavior Funding for long time on an experimental open ocean aquaculture for wildlife. While working 8 hours a day, she The National Park Service (NPS) has imple- media age with several entries to the Pacific COOPERATORS: also took classes at the community college mented natural resource inventory and monitor- Island Parks blog http://pacificislandparks. cooperator and GIS magician, Viet Doan, has project. Now, as a Technician and Dive Safety ing on a servicewide basis to ensure all park and earned an Associates of Science degree in com/ and instant communications on Twitter been exhausted and we will unfortunately Officer, Chris is working on projects for the units possess the resource information needed Inventory and Monitoring, Program in Natural Resources. After seven for effective, science-based management, (PACNscience). The program also released five be losing his services through the CESU by years at the Department of decision-making, and resource protection. Vital Signs video podcasts on iTunes. January 2010. Viet has done a great job as a GIS War in the Pacific NHP on Guam, and American Memorial Park on Saipan. He Marine and Wildlife Resources, Program Manager: Specialist for the program and the network she gained knowledge and ex- Greg Kudray 808-985-6183 I&M has continued its partnership with parks over the past five years. Because of his has helped to initiate freshwater aquatic perience which she will gladly the University of Maryland Center for expertise the program has rehired Viet as surveys and water quality protocols in both Pacific Island Network Staff: an NPS emergency hire to fill the gap until a parks. He also works on the parks' marine share and use throughout her Asia Addlesberger 808-985-6320 Environmental Studies by completing poster new biotech position with the Alison Ainsworth 808-985-6180 and flier projects for HAVO and KALA. permanent GIS Specialist can be hired. protocols. Watershed erosion has led Chris Donna Ashenmacher 808-985-6182 to investigate coral recruitment rates and the National Park Service. She looks Larry Basch 808-541-2693 (x743) accumulation of sediment on the reef. Even forward to working and learning Julie Christian 808-985-6187 Staffing Update Kazuki Kageyama has swapped cooperator more about conservation and Viet Doan 808-985-6184 NPS: Visa Vaivai, new I&M biotech at NPSA, assignments and now works through the when he is not working, Chris spends his time Anne Farahi 808-985-6188 management projects within the came on board in late October. She brings University of Hawaii at Hilo on the Fish near the ocean. The Pacific is a great place for Tahzay Jones 808-985-6188 region and especially in Samoa. Kelly Kozar 808-985-6186 several years of diverse experience working Harvest protocol with Dr. Jim Beets. him to explore through snorkeling, running Visa especially loves the field Lindsey Kramer 808-329-6881 (x1221) with Samoan flora and fauna to the program. with his boonie dog on the beach, diving, Chris Rillahan 671-477-7278 (x1012) surfing, and learning to kiteboard. work. HOORAH! Visa Vaivai 684-699-9418 Corie Yanger 808-985-6189

Hawaii-Pacific Islands CESU Cooperators: Calendar and Monitoring Schedule Kazuki Kageyama 808-985-6181 Cory Nash 808-985-6185 January 9 – 17 Marine ecologist Larry Basch travels to Guam to work on Environmental Impact Statement Sarah Nash 808-985-6193 Karin Schlappa 808-985-6192 January – March Water quality work throughout the network from January through March Steering Committee Members ALKA – Aric Arakaki AMME – Allison Palmer January 25 – Feb.ruary 14 Freshwater streams monitoring at War in the Pacifc National Historical Park HALE – Steve Anderson HAVO – Rhonda Loh KAHO – Sallie Beavers January Vegetation mapping field data collection at Hawai�i Volcanoes National Park (Kahuku) KALA – Guy Hughes Vegetation mapping field data collection at the National Park of American Samoa (Tutuila) NPSA – Peter Craig Mapping acuracy assessment field work in West Hawai�i national park units PUHE – Sallie Beavers/Daniel Kawaiaea PUHO – Adam Johnson VALR – Eric Brown February 3 – 5 Groundwater monitoring protocol implementation at American Memorial Park WAPA – Allison Palmer

Comments? Write to: February Vegetation mapping field data collection on Tutuila in the National Park of American Samoa Cory Nash, Editor Vegetation mapping field data collection at Hawai�i Volcanoes National Park Pacific Island Network Quarterly P.O. Box 52 Hawai'i National Park, HI 96718 March 19 – April 1 Marine fish monitoring in the National Park of American Samoa Phone: 808-985-6185 Benthic marine monitoring at the National Park of American Samoa Fax: 808-985-6111 Email: [email protected] http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/units/pacn/ March Anchialine pools field testing at Hawai�i Volcanoes National Park

Mailing List: Please pass this newsletter on NOTE: Unless indicated all photos and articles are NPS. March Mapping accuracy assessment field work in West Hawai�i national park units Contributers: CGAPS (brown tree snake head), M. Vegetation mapping field data collection at Hawai�i Volcanoes National Park Rauzon (AMME bird photos), C. Nash, S. Nash, A. Addles- berger, T. Jones, D. Cardea, C. Rillahan, V. Vaivai

2 Pacific Island Network Quarterly Pacific Island Network Quarterly 3 Pacific Island Network — Featured Resource Bird Inventory of American Memorial Park Mariana moorhens are spotted ! marchei), rufous fantail (Rhipidura rufifrons Marine Fish Monitoring saipanensis), and white tern (Gygis alba) were Schooling A twelve-day survey of aquatic and forest birds also commonly seen in the survey. Two other Network Parks Where Fish are Monitored spadefish search the was conducted this July at American Memo- endangered and endemic bird species of note • National Park of American Samoa • War in the Pacific NHP reef for food. rial Park (AMME), Saipan, to determine bird included four Nightingale reed-warblers (Ac- • Kaloko-Honokōhau NHP • Kalaupapa NHP abundance with a special focus on the endan- rocephalus luscinia) in the wetland and a flock gered Mariana moorhen (Gallinula chloropus of Mariana swiftlets (Collocalia bartschi) along guami). The bird inventory covered a total of the coast. The little tern (Sternula albifrons) Importance six transects for both the core wetland natural was also seen flying over the park shoreline area (30 acres) and the smaller strand forest and constitutes a new species for the park. Marine fish are a vital resource to Pacific island human (4.9 acres) along the shoreline. Mark Rauzon populations. However, fish stocks throughout the Pacific are recorded ten Mariana moorhens within the This inventory reinforces the importance of threatened by overfishing, habitat loss, and environmental wetland area of the park. Previously, only AMME’s wetland and forest strand areas to the changes. Recent technological advances in fishing techniques anecdotal reports accounted for the waterbird birds of Saipan. and gear lead to increased catch, especially of predatory fish in AMME with many surveys having bypassed like sharks, groupers, and snappers as well as large wrasses and park lands altogether. parrotfish. These advances, among other factors, have led to The elusive declines in fish biomass and species shifts in fish communities. Mariana A total of 948 birds were observed from 17 moorhen Fish communities are an important component of coral reef (Gallinula species. The most common bird reported was ecosystems. Shifts in fish communities can have long lasting chloropus impacts on coral reef systems as a whole. Moreover, because the bridled white-eye (Zosterops conspicillatus), guami) takes making up almost 28% of all birds recorded. cover behind of the significant role that fish play in this system, and their some reeds. The Micronesian honeyeater (Myzomela potential for exploitation, it is crucially important to monitor A Micronesian honeyeater (Myzomela rubratra) rubratra), golden white-eye (Cleptornis this resource. stands out against the lush green fern. Fish sampling sites in the Asan Marine Unit in War in the Pacific National Historical Park. The cross-hatching indicates the targeted sampling area while the red dots indicate actual sampling locations. GPS Photo Files and Google™ Long-Term Monitoring Monitoring of marine fish is focused on daytime, non-cryptic species, Have you ever wanted to explore the art of easily be linked to GPS coordinates and viewed thumbtack, users will see a pop-up image of in the 10 – 20 meter (approximately 30 to 60 feet) depth range. The GPS Photo Files…Hello Google Earth™! in digital maps. that location. process consists of a single diver swimming a 25 meter transect while identifying, counting, and sizing all of the fish noted within that Bigeye scad in a For most people Google™ has become a Using GPS-Photo Link©, each digital image is Google Earth™ and GPS-Photo Link© are transect. If necessary due to significant diversity, a second pass of the baitball enjoy the household name, but for those of us a little less assigned a point location (coordinates). These great tools for many of the Inventory and transect is conducted. In this case, the first pass focuses on the more safety of numbers. technologically savvy, Google Earth™ might point locations are stored in .kml files. KML Monitoring protocols conducted in the Pacific transient fish and the second pass focuses on the territorial fish species. be something new. If you haven’t heard of it or Keyhole Markup Language is a file format Island Network. Field crews using GPS cam- before, Google Earth™ can best be described for storing geographic features such as points, eras or digital cameras and hand-held GPS as a way to view the world…from your com- lines, images, polygons, and models for dis- units now have a new way to view the images Monitoring Objective puter and for free! Once downloaded, Google play in Google Earth™. KML files can then be they record. These products (the images and The primary objective of this monitoring effort is to annually Diversity of fish on a Earth™ allows you to view high resolution used to share information with other Google .kml files) can also be distributed to parks to determine the density, biomass, size, and community structure coral reef in American aerial and satellite imagery, photos, terrain, Earth™ users. With just one click on a virtual use as an interpretation tool for online visitors, of reef fishes at sites randomly selected over hard seafloors in an Samoa illustrates the many niches fish road and street labels, business listings, and natural resource managers, or anyone else that area between the 10 and 20 meter depths. species occupy in the more. It also allows users to explore geograph- might be interested in learning more about the reef ecosystem. ical content, save viewed places, and share parks. information with others. Management Applications If you’d like to learn more about Google Obtaining trend information through monitoring Since some cameras now have GPS capabili- Earth™ and its functionality go to: will allow managers to understand what changes ties (or hand-held GPS units are being used http://earth.google.com/intl/en/userguide/v5/ are occurring within this community and at what A clownfish seeking in combination with digital cameras), we have ug_toc.html shelter in an anemone rate. This enables managers to target potential the ability to link images to their locations on is just a part of the problem areas that can be addressed, both within complex coral reef earth. But what does this really mean? Well… To learn more about GPS-Photo Link© go to: and external to park jurisdictional boundaries. ecosystem at risk. using Google Earth™ and GPS-Photo Link© http://www.geospatialexperts.com/ (software developed by the company Geospa- tial Experts), digital images can quickly and Network website: http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/units/pacn/ Resource website: http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/units/pacn/monitoring/vs_fish_marine.cfm 4 Pacific Island Network Quarterly Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network • October – December 2009, issue no. 18 5 Pacific Island Network — Featured Park Pacific Island Network — Featured Park Cont. Haleakala− National Park: A Ranger's Perspective Journeying from the coral reefs off themselves into kilo hōkū (star gazers- More recently, the degree of change at Kīpahulu, up the valleys, through the navigators). Haleakalā National Park has become a clouds, past forests of giant koa, and concern to scientists, park managers, into the realm of silverswords and gods, A landscape that is both remote and and visitors. Introduced species and one cannot truly remain unchanged. high are key factors to the unique pests are crowding out native species, The fact that it is possible to go to species that would eventually inhabit and new diseases arrive and decimate a place of such diversity steeped in the islands. Anything that survived populations of people and animals. tradition and legend is remarkable. The the long journey to Hawaii had many fact that it can be experienced in a single ecological niches to choose from when Before people arrived, a species day is almost astounding. it arrived. Thus birds flourished and naturally took hold in Hawaii once specialized into different varieties. Many every 30,000 years or so. Now with Everything at Haleakalā came from far ecological niches occupied by mammals modern air travel countless new species away and changed as a result of making on a continent became the domain of arrive to Maui every week as seeds on the journey to the “house of the sun.” birds in Hawaii. clothing, insects on imported plants, The very rocks that created the island or bacteria on new fruits. Perhaps this transmuted from deep mantle proto- is the most profound paradox of all. By rock to fiery lava and red cinders. Most making the journey to see this special rock in the world is far more provincial place, we are both changed by what we "In an attempt to understand and less traveled; being derivations of see, and are changing the landscape at the interwoven nature of the surface material. Haleakalā lava rocks the same time. ecosystems on Haleakalā, scientists built a 10,023 foot mass so large it bends are returning to the nineteenth the crust beneath it. Because of its bulk The hope for the future is that visiting century traditions of the naturalist. in the middle of a vast ocean, Haleakalā Haleakalā National Park is so life They catalog and explore the island, provides most every kind of habitat changing that visitors and residents mapping and noting locations of found on earth in one small place; alike are compelled to act on behalf plants and animals. Technology deserts, rainforest, tundra, streams, of the land. Just as Haleakalā has Instead of herds of grazing ungulates, such as Geographic Information bogs, wet, dry, cold, and hot. changed throughout millennia, we geese inhabited the grasslands of Maui. Systems adds a modern twist to the hope that visiting a National Park is a Plants, insects, and birds adapted to hand drawn maps of old. The result Canoes fashioned in distant lands transformative event for every individual each other in an evolutionary dance that is a beautiful mosaic of colors and brought the first peoples to these who comes to experience it. only time can count. shapes that belong in a museum remote islands. They began their trips –D. Cardea of art as much as they do in a as Polynesians, but in time the land laboratory." and the unique life on the new islands transformed the culture – and they –D. Cardea, Ranger became Hawaiians. The abundance of life on Haleakalā in all its myriad forms was the raw material of culture. Eventually, nature and culture were inseparable. So much so that today when the park practices natural resource protection and preservation it is helping to maintain, perpetuate, and reconnect Hawaiians with their culture.

For example, some of the rocks at the summit of Haleakalā crystallized into fine-grained dark stone prized by the adze makers of old Hawaii for their strength. Pilgrims from the coast would brave the journey up to the realm of the gods to quarry these special rocks for tools. Others clad in capes of Ti leaves would brave the night to transform

6 Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network • October – December 2009, issue no. 18 Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network • October – December 2009, issue no. 18 7 Pacific Island Network — Critical Issue Birds of American Memorial Park Can we keep them safe? Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has vibrant bird life. A recent inventory of the forest birds of American Memorial Park turned up a beautiful array of species within the park's forest and mangroves. It may be difficult to tell from the cheery colors of the Micronesian honeyeater (Myzomela rubratra) or the Mariana fruit dove (Ptilinopus roseicapilla), but imminent danger is lurking just around the corner. Just one hundred and twenty miles to the South, War in the Pacific National Historical Park on Guam paints a much gloomier picture. In one of the most traumatic depictions of the devastating effects of invasive species, Guam's bird life has been nearly exterminated by the introduced brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis). In as little as 50 years, Guam went from having spectacular birds of its own to the point where bird song is no longer part of the ambiance in the forests, and bird-eating snakes lurk in every corner.

Fortunately, although brown tree snakes have been reported, this fate has not yet befallen Saipan. Vigilance at the ports of entry coupled with a determined snake control task force has been the only way to abate this pestilence and keep Saipan's unique bird populations alive and thriving. To learn more visit: http://hawaiiconservation.org/_library/documents/2008hcc/presentations/ camp-opt.pdf and http://www.hear.org/species/boiga_irregularis/pdfs/stopthebts20080422.pdf

white-throated ground-dove (Gallicolumba xanthonura)

little terns (Sterna albifrons)

bridled white-eye orange-cheeked waxbill (Zosterops conspicillatus) (Estrilda melpoda)

golden white-eye (Cleptornis marchei)

Micronesian honeyeater (Myzomela rubratra)

Pacific reef heron Mariana fruit dove (Egretta sacra) rufous fantail (Rhipidura (Ptilinopus roseicapilla) rufifrons saipanensis) nest — C. Nash

8 Newsletter of the Pacific Island Network • October – December 2009, issue no. 18