Dr. Christian Vlautin: Conservation Biologist
Dr. Christian Vlautin, Wildlife conservation biologist and coordinator of the Kauai Nene Habitat Conservation Plan, visited our classroom Wednesday April 3rd. He spoke of Hawaii’s state bird the Nene; the Nene is protected by federal and state laws. He educated students on the Nene’s evolutionary history and biology. Current challenges are predators, habitat loss, and human causes such as human conflicts, vehicle collisions, and debris entanglement. In 1949, there were only 50 Nene left. Through conservation initiatives between the US Fish and Wildlife Service (feds) and Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) division of Forestry and Wildlife there are over 3,000 Nene statewide today, 1300 of which are on Kauai. The Nene team provides emergency help, monitoring, scientific collaboration, and outreach.