Aloha e <<First Name>> <<Last Name>>,
The summer was a busy one for the HISC support staff, so we are excited to be recruiting for a new HISC planner to join the team in Honolulu. The planner plays a key role in strategic planning and coordination with invasive species projects and agencies across the state. If you or someone you know are interested in helping us shape the invasive species strategy for Hawai'i, find more details here and submit your application before the closing date on November 16.
|
|
Mahalo,
HISC Support Team- Chelsea Arnott (Invasive Species Coordinator), Leyla Kaufman (Māmalu poepoe), Elizabeth Speith (643pest.org), and Chuck Chimera (HPWRA)
|
|
|
Hawai'i Invasive Species Council FY23 Budget and Meetings
|
|
|
The HISC support team and council have finalized the FY23 intergovernmental invasive species funding, including council approval of the budget on August 17. $8,246,824.55 was requested across 37 applications. Thirty projects were funded totaling $3,830,870.23. A full list of FY23 funded projects is available online, as well as a recording of the the HISC Council meeting on August 17.
The HISC council met on October 20th for the final time with some of the current council appointees to discuss Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) and the possible risks to Hawaiʻi from this deadly coral disease affecting the Caribbean, as well as an update on the 2017-2027 Hawaiʻi Interagency Biosecurity Plan accomplishments to date.
|
|
|
Pacific Ecological Security Conference in Palau
|
|
|
A delegation of Hawai'i representatives from federal and state agencies attended the first Pacific Ecological Security Conference held in Palau in October. The conference focused on briefing leadership from Pacific Island nations, territories, and states about the importance of prioritizing invasive species prevention and management in the Pacific and with a changing climate.
There was wide recognition of the impacts of invasive species to island ecosystems. The President of Palau, Surangel S. Whipps , stated earlier “Invasive species pose a national threat to our food systems and therefore require a national response across all sectors of the republic to ensure food security for our people.”
Action plans were presented and discussed at the conference to address three shared, priority topics for the Pacific and how to make progress on each; invasive ants, coconut rhinoceros beetle, and biocontrol to manage widespread pests. For more information about the conference, please visit https://www.pacificrisa.org/pesc/.
|
|
The Ports of Entry/Exit Pest Monitoring Program is expanding
to support more harbor surveillance!
|
|
|
The Ports of Entry/Exit Pest Monitoring Program is the multi-agency partnership that adds an additional layer of surveillance at airports across the state by monitoring for invasive ants, coconut rhinoceros beetle, mosquitoes, and Africanized honeybees. Monitoring and targeted surveys have been conducted at the state airports since 2016. Surveys are being expanded to harbors, starting with Honolulu Harbor and Kona, Kawaihae, and Hilo Harbors and adding a new target, Japanese Beetle.
More info is available online about the Ports of Entry/Exit Pest Monitoring Program
|
|
|
|
Left: The O'ahu Invasive Species Committee (OISC) worked with Young Brothers to install bee swarm traps at Honolulu Harbor to start the surveillance for Africanized honeybees. Middle: Lures are used in traps for coconut rhinoceros beetles, Japanese beetles, and bee swarms. Right: HISC support staff Elizabeth Speith assisted the Maui Invasive Species Committee (MISC) with ant sampling at the Maui airport using the MISC prototype ant sampling "battle gear."
|
|
Conservation Advocacy in the Schools
8/08 Hawaiian Birds Day
|
|
|
Following up last year’s successful project to engage students in advocating for ʻŌhiʻa Lehua to become Hawaii’s State Endemic tree at the State Legislature, first-time student advocates are gearing up to support a resolution to designate a Hawaiian Birds Day on August 8, 2023 (8/08 for Hawaii State). This resolution aims to celebrate and acknowledge the importance our native Hawaiian Honeycreepers in particular, the threats that they face, and support efforts to prevent their extinction.
Students and teachers across the state will learn about the honeycreepers, the legislative process, and advocacy. They will turn their knowledge to action by asking their legislators for support, submitting testimony, and testifying in support of the resolution in the legislative session beginning in January 2023.
We are still looking for more conservation advocates across the state! Please contact Kailee Lefebvre, CGAPS Planner at kaileehl@hawaii.edu for more details.
|
|
|
Be on the Lookout (or be aware of) Possible Dream Herb Impostor
|
|
|
A weed risk assessment was recently completed for Dream Herb (Calea ternifolia or Calea zacatechichi), a shrub in the sunflower (Asteraceae) family native to Mexico and Central America that is gaining popularity in the medicinal plant community and sold online as a sleep aid.
According to WebMD, Dream Herb has been used by indigenous people of Mexico to increase dreams and for its hallucinogenic properties. It is now grown and used by people for anxiety, insomnia, memory and thinking skills, diabetes, and headaches, despite there being no good scientific evidence to support any use.
From an invasive risk standpoint, Dream Herb is not known to be naturalized in the Hawaiian Islands but may be established in the Southeastern US and can become weedy in vacant lots and disturbed sites. In spite of these and other traits, it was rated Low Risk by the weed risk assessment system and is not predicted to have any serious detrimental effects on Hawaii’s agriculture or natural environment, even if it were to naturalize here.
|
Perhaps a bigger concern is that Dream Herb bears a superficial resemblance to the highly invasive Devil Weed (Chromolaena odorata), another member of the sunflower family that is regarded as one of the world’s worst 100 invasive species and is rated very High Risk by the HPWRA. Devil weed is currently present on the islands of Oahu and Hawaii and is being targeted by OISC and BIISC for control. There is a fear that Devil Weed may be grown or sold by unwitting or unscrupulous people as Dream Herb and spread to locations where it is currently not found. In addition to the terrible environmental impacts this would have, Devil Weed is toxic to cattle, may cause skin problems and asthma in allergy prone people, and could presumably have serious health consequences for people who accidentally use it.
Please familiarize yourself with the two plants and be aware of online sales or local cultivation of plants reported to be Dream Herb to ensure that the plant of someone’s dreams doesn’t become an invasive, or health nightmare. Please visit Plant Pono (plantpono.org) for more information.
|
|
|
Upcoming Events and Job Opportunities
|
|
|
|
|
|
