Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center
The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center is a multi-faceted resource for native wildlife conservation. Sick and injured native birds and bats come for medical treatment and rehabilitation to be released back into the wild. HWC also serves as a community resource to share information about our native species and how to better protect them. The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center’s wildlife hospital is in Kapaau, on Hawaii Island, but the geographic reach of the organization expands statewide, and we have smaller stabilization satellites on Oahu and Lanai. Last year (2022) saw the highest patient numbers to date – 905 total patient cases statewide between our main Kapaau facility, Oahu satellite, and partner programs. So far in 2023 we are at 118 patients, which is up 33% from the same time last year. Total patients since we opened in 2012 have surpassed 3,500 native birds (and a handful of bats, they are rare patients, and we only get about 1-5 per year). Many of our native Hawaiian species are in rapid decline so we cannot afford to disregard individuals that are hurt, sickened, or orphaned through both human-caused and natural reasons. In that way, our medical services and rehabilitative care contribute significantly to the overall protection of native species. Each bird or bat that we can return to the wild contributes to the health of local populations in Hawaii and our island biodiversity. The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center provides direct and immediate action to mitigate harmful impacts on vulnerable native wildlife and is an essential component of the overall mechanism of conservation efforts in Hawaii. Our wildlife service’s function as an additional tool in Hawaii’s conservation toolkit, sharing goals and outcomes with other conservation efforts including habitat protection, predator control, and research.
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Purpose of Activity
In support of biodiversity conservation, Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center provides expertise for rescue, state-of-the-art veterinary care, and rehabilitation of native winged wildlife. Our vision is a world where native species recover and thrive in all environments through comprehensive conservation strategies and partnerships. Our mission is to protect, conserve, and aid in the recovery of Hawaii’s native winged wildlife through hands-on treatment, research, training, science education and cultural programs.
Activities
The threats to native species that we are addressing are: 1) human impacts on wildlife 2) impacts of climate change on wildlife, 3) absence of an organized wildlife response network for Hawaii, and 4) community indifference to native species. The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center aims to reverse the extinction trend in our islands and counteract the further loss of native wildlife in the Pacific, while providing a resource that helps humans and native species coexist. We provide: – Medical treatment and rehabilitative care for all species of native birds and the Hawaiian hoary bat throughout the state of Hawaii. We also offer aid to remote islands beyond our eight main Hawaiian Islands when requested. – Reduction of stress and anxiety for the people who encounter wildlife that need help. HWC serves as a “wildlife dispatch”, where we answer all wildlife help calls to assist the caller in the appropriate response. Our office is open seven days a week and we answer calls from people of all ages, races, and demographics. – Opportunities to increase the knowledge base about native species in Hawaii. HWC has assisted researchers from both government agencies like the U.S. Geological Survey, local universities, and national institutions. – Unique educational opportunities for students of all ages. Programs have ranged from preschool level to college level and beyond. Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center also offers internships and externships as professional development opportunities for students interested in wildlife careers.
We are currently training an ambassador Io (Hawaiian Hawk) to provide additional educational opportunities at the center. The goal of our Ambassador Hawk Program is to provide a good quality of life for Makaʻio – who is blind in one eye and is not releasable – including a varied diet, regular health checks and enrichment. Maka‘io will help connect the community to native species and help foster curiosity and learning of native species biology, conservation, and culture. Maka‘io will be trained to be comfortable around people during educational talks, but the public is not allowed to pet him or encroach on his personal space. When not on the glove he is able to fly and perch freely in his aviary and do as he pleases. We appreciate the service he is providing and want to create the best life for him, and do so in a culturally pono (righteousness) way. Maka‘io is a permanent resident of HWC and is included in educational programs with the authorization of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Permit Number: MBPER0039501) and the Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife.
Visiting Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center
The Hawai‘i Wildlife Center currently works with student groups most frequently, providing educational activities and a presentation about the organization’s wildlife work and important conservation issues. We can also accommodate visits from other community or tourism groups. We require all group visits to schedule at least a week in advance. Please note that the patients in the hospital are not on display and will not be visible during a visit. Most visits are held in our covered education pavilion in the front of the building. Our Kapaau facility also features the Hoopulama Science and Discovery Center, an interactive space at the Hawai‘i Wildlife Center that highlights native wildlife rehabilitation, conservation, biology, and wildlife medicine. These exhibits include Hawaiian honeycreeper sculptures by master craftsman Haruo Uchiyama, an exhibit wall with an interactive touchscreen monitor that displays patient photos, videos, and a virtual tour of the Hawai‘i Wildlife Center wildlife hospital, and a native garden. We have a small shop on-site as well that features a variety of bird and bat-themed items from local artists and Hawai‘i Wildlife Center logo items.
History
- 2004
- The Hawai‘i Wildlife Center (HWC) was founded by Kalaheo High School graduate Linda Elliott under the fiscal sponsorship of the North Kohala Community Resource Center.
- 2006
- The organization received its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit status.
- 2012
- HWC's facility was opened. Construction of the HWC facility started in 2008 and completed in 2008.
- 2014
- HWC goes to Kure Atoll and Midway to help with the Laysan Duck project (https://www.hawaiiwildlifecenter.org/operation-laysan-duck-a-huge-success.html)
- 2020
- HWC celebrates reaching 1,000 patients milestone since opening in 2012. Patient numbers rapidly increased and the next 2,000 and 3,000 patients milestones came much more quickly.
- 2021
- 2,000 total patients reached.
- 2022
- 3,000 total patients reached.
