Five ʻalalā will soon be released into the wild from a temporary field aviary on the slopes of Haleakalā — the latest in the reintroduction efforts for the Hawaiian crow.
The ʻalalā population declined drastically in the 20th century. The last wild pair were seen in 2002, and they are considered extinct in the wild.
Intensive breeding efforts for the ʻalalā on Maui and the Big Island began in 1996. Previous releases on Big Island were unsuccessful as most of the birds were eventually killed by the ʻio, the Hawaiian hawk.
This pilot project on Maui is a joint effort between the state and conservation partners, including the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. It will be the first Hawaiian crow release on Maui.
Hannah Bailey, the program manager for the zoo’s Hawaiian Endangered Bird Conservation Program, also runs the Keauhou and Maui bird conservation centers.
All five birds set for release, three males and two females, were hatched at the Keauhou location. Bailey said the chicks were raised to think for themselves — and with little human contact.
"We wear a hat with a little face. It's actually like a mosquito mask, or it's a hat with a screen on the front. The other thing we do is we try to limit a lot of discussion around them. We don't talk to the birds. It's not a pet," Bailey said. "We bought out all of the plastic crows on Amazon last year, so we have those around. And we have almost like little puppets that we'll use for feeding as well."
Conservationists continuously play forest and bird sounds so the birds are not distracted by human conversations or building noises. The ʻalalā were also taught predator evasion tactics.
"We have a stuffed barn owl that whenever it's present, they hear vocalizations that are associated with predators or alarm calls," she said.
Bailey said the conservation program has about 115 birds ranging in age from a couple of months old to late 20s.
When determining which birds to release into the wild, they choose the ones with the most common genetics.
"There's a very big part of what we do that is art and kind of gut, and then we're trying to document it all so we can get the science of it. And this is why we're starting to look more at personalities too, because there is a good amount of research out there that shows certain animal personalities or pairings produce more offspring or get along better," Bailey said.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Oct. 25, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
