Pacific Rim Conservation has been protecting and monitoring Laysan Albatrosses at various sites on O'ahu and Kaua'i for 20 years. A large project called No Net Loss involves establishing safe Laysan Albatross colonies; visit No Net Loss - Home (islandarks.org) to learn more. The goals of the No Net Loss initiative are: 1) to protect as much seabird nesting habitat in the main islands as is being lost in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands because of the effects of climate change; and 2) to establish new breeding colonies of vulnerable seabird species that are safe from sea level rise and non-native predators. We do this by building predator exclusion fences, removing invasive predators, and then attracting or translocating birds into these protected areas. We currently are focusing these efforts at James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge on O?ahu and have begun working on four priority species that are most vulnerable to sea level rise: Black-footed Albatross, Laysan Albatross, Bonin Petrel, and Tristram?s Storm-petrel, all of which have a high proportion of their global population nesting in a small number of locations just a few meters above sea level.

Photos and artwork by Robby Kohley and Erika Dittmar.