Upcoming presentation on Mariana bird life

Captive breeding programs at participating zoos on the U.S. mainland have thus far experienced success with the golden white-eye.
(Contributed Photo)

The uniqueness of bird life in the CNMI will take center stage on Thursday, May 4, 2017, starting at 6pm, at the American Memorial Park auditorium. The presentation, to be hosted by the Asia Pacific Academy of Sciences, Science Education, and Environmental Management in cooperation with the local Division of Fish and Wildlife, will also share the work that is being done in the region by the Marianas Avifauna Conservation project.

The MAC project’s education and community outreach program has been growing on the island of Saipan. The CNMI DFW started the MAC program in 2004. The project is intended to provide the bird life of the Marianas with the best possible chances for long-term survival, with the objectives of preserving, maintaining, and establishing self-sustaining populations of native birds secure from the threat of the brown tree snake. To rapidly address this threat, the DFW has asked institutions within the Association of Zoos and Aquariums community for assistance with long-term conservation efforts aimed at protecting native avifauna on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota.

Background
The mid-1980s saw the brown tree snake either extirpate or drive to extinction nine of 12 species of forest bird in Guam. Almost 20 years later the U.S. Department of the Interior determined that Saipan may support an “incipient” population of this serious invasive predator. In 2005 the DFW, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and AZA determined that preemptive action was necessary for the CNMI’s bird life to avoid the fate that befell Guam, thus the MAC project became a reality.

The project’s endeavors are two-fold; 1) the maintenance of captive populations (which serve as genetic reserves) of the CNMI’s native and endemic forest bird species at AZA-affiliated institutions on the U.S. mainland, and 2) the establishment of satellite populations of these bird species on islands in the Mariana archipelago deemed safe from brown tree snakes.

Captive breeding programs at participating zoos on the U.S. mainland have thus far experienced success with the Mariana fruit dove, the white-throated ground dove, and the golden white-eye. Likewise, satellite populations of bridled white-eyes, golden white-eyes, and Mariana fruit doves have successfully been established on Sarigan. In both endeavors, however, there is more work ahead of the MAC project.

Ellen Gorrell of the Toledo Zoo first spoke to the local science academy in May 2013. This Thursday she will provide an update on the program’s successes and challenges. Like all APASEEM gatherings, everyone is invited to attend and ask questions. Additional program information is available by visiting the Facebook page Gorrell maintains via https://www.facebook.com/MarianaAvifaunaConservation. For more information about APASEEM, visit our website at http://www.apaseem.org. (PR)