Three years after the last piece of timber went into place at the Hawaii Wildlife Center, the native animal rescue facility is hard at work giving the injured a second chance.
The center, based in Kapaau, provides care and rehabilitation of winged creatures from across the archipelago, and also training in wildlife rescue. HWC is celebrating its third birthday this month with eight birds in its care, including a pueo from Lanai, a Hawaiian petrel from Maui and Hawaiian hawks from the Big Island.
HWC founder and director Linda Elliott was part of a team caring for 28 Laysan ducks as they were transported to Kure Atoll from Midway Atoll in September to help expand the numbers of the critically endangered bird. Saturday, Elliott told a gathering of about 30 people at the center that they were part of a network that makes her work possible.
“We are the center but it takes eyes everywhere,” Elliott said. “All of you spreading the word we are here gives us the opportunity to save more animals.”
Elliott has been rehabilitating animals in Hawaii and elsewhere for decades. It struck her as odd that a wildlife hospital was lacking in a state with the distinction of being the endangered species capital of the U.S. Elliott drew up the first plans for the center in 1994, but it wasn’t until a decade later that the center gained traction under the umbrella of the North Kohala Community Resource Center. The HWC became its own nonprofit in 2006, and construction of the center off Lighthouse Road started in 2008.
Today, the center employs six and has 36 active volunteers. Jan Pelmulder, who lives nearby, was cleaning cages on Saturday morning.
“It’s really great to volunteer at a place where you just really enjoy being,” she said. “I’m learning about birds. I grew up on a ranch but I hadn’t really worked with injured birds.”
HWC is the only facility in the Pacific Islands that meets all federal, state and local standards for large-scale rescue and rehabilitation of sick, injured and oiled wildlife, said Sarah Davis, wildlife rehabilitation technician for the center. Each arriving animal is examined for dehydration and broken bones, and some even receive blood work that tells a lot about the bird’s overall condition, she said.
Davis showed the group how to identify the native species that can be taken to the center for rehabilitation, and how to pick up and help a native animal that has been injured.
“If you call us, we can help you assess any situation,” said Davis. “We can help you determine what kind of bird it is and how to approach it.”
In general, it is best to come up behind the bird, throw a towel or other cloth over it and secure the beak by holding the back of the head. If you have gloves or glasses, use them to reduce the chance of being injured by the animal, Davis said.
The center will be celebrating its birthday through the month. Upcoming free events every Saturday starting at 1 p.m. include bird painting and block printing with local artists and a presentation on native birds by biologist and photographer Robert Shallenberger.
For more information, visit hawaiiwildlifecenter.org.