Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project

Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project Maui Nui Seabirds is a project of PCSU of the UH Manoa in association with Hawai'i DLNR/DOFAW

Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project (MNSRP) began in March of 2006 when project staff documented the presence of a significant breeding colony of endangered Hawaiian Petrels (HAPE) in the upper reaches of the Lāna‘i watershed. This colony is the second largest known breeding colony of HAPE in Hawaii. Project staff began work to protect the seabirds by removing predators and habitat altering plants that were taking over the breeding colony. On Maui and Moloka’i MNSRP continues to search for seabird colonies, provide protections where funding and staffing permit and to provide public education about the importance of seabirds in our natural environment. The project collaborates with researchers, managers and regulators to focus efforts as well as possible to benefit our seabirds.

10/02/2026

They’re getting ready😤 In Maui, ʻUaʻu will start fledging mid-October. ʻUaʻu kani will start early November. Which means, peak fallout season is fast approaching.

Fallout peaks during October and November when juvenile seabirds take their first flights to sea at night, but become distracted by our artificial lights.

These first flights are so important because when the juvenile birds leave, they’ll be at sea for nearly five years before ever returning back to land!

We’ll be posting more information on fallout protocol as we get closer. In the meantime, you can help set up the fledging birds for success by:

💡Turning off outdoor lights when not in use or using motion sensors
💡Ensuring outdoor lights are warm-toned
💡Directing outdoor lights down to the ground
💡Fully shielding outdoor lights so there is no glow above the light.

🚨If you find a downed seabird in Maui, please call the local hotline at 808-573-BIRD.

There aren’t as many ʻaʻo on Maui as we’d like. These seabirds are threatened and can only be found in Hawaiʻi. But this...
09/22/2026

There aren’t as many ʻaʻo on Maui as we’d like. These seabirds are threatened and can only be found in Hawaiʻi. But this story shows us that all the effort of social attraction, protection from introduced predators, and habitat restoration makes a difference. Here’s to more ʻaʻo on Maui in the years to come!

You can be apart of helping seabird conservation keep chugging along when you shop at Foodland in the month of September...
09/17/2026

You can be apart of helping seabird conservation keep chugging along when you shop at Foodland in the month of September!

Here’s how:

1. At checkout, enter your Maika‘i phone number or present your Maika‘i card.
2. Tell the cashier: “I’d like to make a $___ donation to MNSRP, code 78865.
3. Review your receipt to confirm the organization name and donation amount is correct.

You can support by making a donation at any Foodland, Sack N Save, or Foodland Farms store. Give Aloha runs during the month of September. 100% of your gift will go directly to MNSRP and Foodland will match a portion of your contribution🙌

09/15/2026

Wind…and ʻuaʻu. During the ‘ua’u breeding season (Mar-Octoberish), Haleakalā comes alive with a call you won’t hear during the day! Perhaps you’ve heard them when you camped in Haleakalā National Park in the crater, or lingered after sunset on the summit when the stars come out.

ʻUaʻu, or the Hawaiian Petrel, is an endangered seabird that can only be found in the Hawaiian Islands. The largest known colony is high up on Haleakalā—not the typical place we expect seabirds to burrow! These manu spend most of their lives at sea and only return to land to breed.

So the next time you catch a glimpse of Haleakalā at sundown, remember the ʻuaʻu as they make their passages between the ocean and their mauka home.
🌊🗻

08/14/2026

Nearly all species, including humans, are negatively impacted by artificial light at night. Maui County passed Ordinance 5434 to mitigate the impact of artificial light on our community, including seabirds and sea turtles. But the awesome thing is that we ALL get to benefit from more intentional lighting that is:

- low to the ground
- directed down, fully shielded
- is warm-toned—emitting less harmful long wavelengths

Follow the link in our bio to learn more about Maui’s requirements for outdoor lighting and which properties are exempt.

If you notice noncompliant lighting in your area, please confirm that the property is not exempt and kindly report it using the County of Maui COMConnect app.

And mahalo to the properties that have already adjusted their lights accordingly🙌

A hui hou to a longstanding 🔨 of MNSRP! It’s hard to sum up five years of hard work and sacrifice in one little post. Jo...
08/03/2026

A hui hou to a longstanding 🔨 of MNSRP! It’s hard to sum up five years of hard work and sacrifice in one little post. Josh has been apart of the project for a long time and has worked so diligently, often doing many not-so-glamorous tasks to protect our native seabirds.

Josh joined the MNSRP ‘ohana in 2021 for an internship before graduating from UH Maui College. His goal was to gain experience to prepare for a career preserving Maui’s natural resources. From there, he supported MNSRP through his Kupu ʻĀina Corp service, and finally joined the team full time as our Seabird Protection Associate.

MNSRP and the seabirds have benefited greatly from his compassion and hard work! We can never replace Josh, but we stand behind him as he pursues new challenges in his continuing career of protecting our natural resources. We’re so thankful for you, Josh, and can’t wait to work together as partners in protecting native Hawaiian species!

(Also, it wasn’t in Josh’s nature to jump in front of a camera, so we had to get a little creative in the photos we chose to celebrate him…)

07/23/2026

It takes two to tango. It also takes two to successfully incubate an egg!

Shearwater and petrel pairs take turns with each other incubating their egg. Each bird sits on the egg, sometimes for days at a time while their partner forages for food on the open ocean. ‘Ua‘u have been known to go for two weeks on the egg before their partner relieves them!

Thatʻs a ton of energy these birds are expelling to keep the egg safe and secure. Shoutout to these manu for this sacrifice!💪

07/16/2026

Another season of radar is wrapped up! What’s next? Processing all the data we collected😅

Mahalo nui to our partners Haleakalā National Park and Hawaiian Electric for helping make this happen this year. And a big mahalo to the MNSRP crew and all the volunteers who spent many of their June nights on the side of the road tracking the birds!

06/12/2026

Look who's back! After feeding at sea, our 'u'au kani are returning to their burrows to lay a single egg. They aren't the only seabirds laying eggs at this time of year, but they are the most visible to the public. Look at how vulnerable this egg is barely tucked away off of a path! Protection from predators is even more critical at this time and MNSRP works diligintly to keep these expectant parents and their precious egg safe. You can help too, by obeying signs to avoid 'u'ua kani nesting areas. Be on the look out!

MNSRP would like to welcome our newest Kupu Service Member, Kelly McCandless! Kelly grew up in Santa Cruz, California a...
06/09/2026

MNSRP would like to welcome our newest Kupu Service Member, Kelly McCandless! Kelly grew up in Santa Cruz, California and received a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a minor in chemistry from Oregon State University. While familiar with Maui, this is her first time living and working on-island. She is grateful for the opportunity to work in conservation and to continue learning from the scientists, communities, and ecosystems that make Hawaiʻi such a unique place. When she is not working in the field with us, you can find her out paddling in Kahalui harbor. Welcome to the team, Kelly!

Address

P. O. Box 903
Haliimaile, HI
96768

Opening Hours

Monday 7:30am - 4pm
Tuesday 7:30am - 4pm
Wednesday 7:30am - 4pm
Thursday 7:30am - 4pm
Friday 7:30am - 4pm

Telephone

+18085723500

Website

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