HPA Microplastics Workshop

Most plastics in the ocean break up into very small particles. These small plastic bits are called "microplastics." Other plastics are intentionally designed to be small. They're called microbeads and are used in many health and beauty products. They pass unchanged through waterways into the ocean.  Microplastics are of concern because of their widespread presence in the oceans and the potential physical and toxicological risks they pose to organisms.

Rachael Zoe Miller is a National Geographic Explorer, inventor and Explorers Club Fellow working to protect the ocean through expedition-based science, conservation and storytelling. She is the founder of Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean, a nonprofit addressing marine debris through cleanup, education, innovation and solutions-based research. She is also a co-inventor of the Cora Ball, the world’s first microfiber-catching laundry ball, and sea life artist for Coraclip, a renewable alternative to wasteful virgin-to-landfill plastic bag clips. Miller leads teams on expeditions whose results are published in peer-reviewed journals and experiences translated into education programs; recent expeditions include sampling the entire Hudson River for microplastics in the air, water and soil; microplastic sampling from onboard the E/V Nautilus in the Hawaiian archipelago; and research in the Arctic and Antarctic with Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic as a visiting Explorer/scientist. She and her team have received multiple awards and recognition, including Best VideoRay PR Story for using ROVs to find and remove marine debris, being named an Ocean Exemplar by World Ocean Observatory, and winner of the Most Innovative Idea in Microplastics from Think Beyond Plastic.

 

On Sunday HPA’s Marine Science team welcomed her to campus for a training on CSI for the oceans - using forensics to investigate microplastics pollution. 6 high school students and 4 HPA faculty members spent 5 hours learning how to assess microplastics in our oceans. The team collected water samples from 3 sites, returned to the lab to filter, collect and analyze any plastic microplastics in the water. The intention is to use this technique to assess microplastics in Hawai’i’s shorelines to add the global understanding of microplastics as well as enable HPA students to conduct independent studies investigating topics surrounding this issue.  

Hualalai Honu Health Assessment

 

Hualalai, Thursday, April 4, 2024

Laura Jim, Marc Rice and 8 HPA STRP students traveled to Hualalai Four Seasons Resort on  thursday (4/4/24) to capture, tag and conduct a health assessment of resident honu along the shoreline from Kumukea Beach to Kukio Beach.  We were joined by Tyler and Maika'i from the Hawaii State Division of Aquatic Resources and George Balazs for the work day.  We arrived at 0815 and  set up our work site.  The surf was pretty rough along Kumukea Beach and we had to move our capture work to Kukio Beach which is more protected.  We were able to capture two honu at Kumukea and 9 at Kukio Beach.  Six of the honu were new captures and 5 were recaptures from previous trips.  One of the recaptures (H76) had moved to Kukio from Mauna Lani where it had been captured and tagged in October of 2023 (a distance of ~25 miles).  

All 11 of the honu appeared healthy and were weighed, measured, tagged and released by the research team.  

Below are the growth rate calcuations for the 5 recaptures.  Note that H 76 was the honu that moved from Mauna Lani Bay to Kukio Bay some time between October 2023 and April 2024.

The table below shows the growth rates of the 5 recaptured turtles.

Kanu Koa Project Student Volunteer Day

On Tuesday, February 3rd, Laura Jim escorted three HPA students - Murphy Makely, Charlotte Kassis and Pemma Norbu- to Kona Village and Kahuwai Bay. The group was gifted the opportunity to volunteer with The Nature Conservancy's Kanu Koa Project. The project aims to accelerate the growth of reefs by planting corals in Kahuwai Bay that were deemed corals off opportunity, coral colonies that had been broken off from the recent swells. Part of this work includes research on the optimum method of "planting" the coral - either using a nursery system or planting directly on the reef itself. Students learned about corals of opportunity, how to fragment coral, and how to glue fragments. We worked exclusively with lobe coral, Porites lobata. 

Waikoloa Hilton Field Work

 1/30/24

Laura Jim, Marc Rice and 7 HPA STRP students traveled to the Waikoloa Hilton on Tuesday (1/30/24) to capture, tag and conduct a health assessment on resident honu that spend time in the "lagoon" at the Hilton Hotel.  We arrived at the hotel at 0730 and began transporting our equipment to the lagoon area.  We were set up and ready to work by 0845 and Ms. Jim and the capture team began the in-water work. 

Two middle school students joined us to learn about the program and participate in the field work.  They are hoping to be able to complete the training necessary to become part of the HPA Sea Turtle Research Program.

The area between the two arrow is the lagoon area where turtles reside.  This day, a number of them were feeding back in the area behind the bridge on the right of the picture.  The waterfall, where honu often gather to feed was not running and there were very few honu in that area.

Over the course of the day, Ms. Jim and here team were able to capture 15 honu and we measured, weighed, tagged and did a health assessment on all of them ... we were finished by ~1445.  There were lots of hotel guest and interested onlookers and the HPA team did a great job of informing people about what we were doing and why it is so important.  

Of the 15 honu captured, 6 were recaptures and 9 were new captures.  The honu ranged in size from 40 cm (18 lbs) to 66 cm (84 lbs).  

SIX of the 15 turtles were recaptures and we had data from the previous capture so we could calculate a growth rate (cm/yr).

Below are photos taken during the day.

Setting up our working area.. the tide was a little high but dropping

Getting all the equipment out and organized... the tide has dropped already.

The capture team bringing in the first honu of the day.

Turtle H173 was a recapture from our last trip to the Hilton on 2/7/23.  It had grown about 1 cm in 1 year.

The THE team releases a honu while hotel guests watch.

Keeping control of a honu and preparing to put in in the carrier for release.

Painting a number on a honu as part of the Honu Count program operated by NOAA.

Recording data and looking at the Caulerpa algae that honu in the area like to feed on.

The team releases a honu after it has been worked up.

The HPA capture team heads out for another honu.

Charlott brings in the smallest honu of the day.

Catherine and Fischer take a honu out for release.

H 244 is ready for release.

Carefully putting our largest turtle into a carrier for release.

Releasing honu number HA 72.

The HPA STRP team after a hard days work!