The rhythm of Hōlanikū is written in waves, wings, and wind.
Check out the latest field blog from Dwight:
Hi everyone!
I apologize for the delay in writing another blog of my own. Fortunately, my teammates put together some incredible blogs for our readers.
The last couple months have had so many changes. We had some high temperatures and low winds in July, but in August, we had a few rainstorms and some strong gusts, which the remaining albatross chicks definitely enjoyed. We also experienced a tsunami at the end of July, which was quite eventful in the hours leading up to the surges arriving on the island. However, in the end, they had hardly any impact, as they didn’t even reach the vegetation line at the top of the beaches. Hōlanikū has some strong dunes around its edges that protect us from surges, and the nature of the bathymetry (underwater topology) around the atoll also helps prevent the buildup of higher waves.
Our evening skies are filling up as we see the Nunulu (Bonin Petrels) returning to the island. They’re one of my favorite birds, and they always give me a smile as I watch them dance in the skies after sunset and hear their constant growls after night has fallen.
I’m definitely quite spoiled out here with this amazing team. Nick is an incredible co-lead and is always teaching me more about birds. He also seems to have the magic touch when it comes to getting a water pump started with its cord, despite me taking all the appropriate steps.
Nick, Kayla, and Jordan bake some sweet treats frequently too!
Kayla and Nick also spoiled the team with some homemade ice cream one evening as well.
The team works really hard out in the field too, and I’m so proud of us and how much we’ve learned in such a small amount of time. It’s a great feeling to know that we can all tackle projects on our own at the same time and achieve so much. We’ve all had parts in cutting trails, conducting roofing projects, and tackling infestations of CASFIL (Cassytha filiformis), the danger noodle that can quickly choke out native shrubs.
Two weeks ago we had a few guests from the RAMP cruise (Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program) come ashore for about an hour. It was such a pleasure seeing other human beings even if it was just for a short amount of time, and I’m not saying this just because of the ice cream they brought us either.
Anyways, thank you for reading! I hope you all enjoy the photos I’ve put together. The clouds out here always amaze me.
Mahalo,
Dwight
