2 weeks Ago By Erin Collins
Hawaii's hunters have a new side-quest this season: to help unravel the dietary mysteries of game birds on Hawaiʻi Island. The Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) is conducting a study that involves analyzing the crop content of these feathered dwellers – the crop being a part of the bird's digestive system, akin to a pre-stomach pantry where the food gets stocked up before the birds get down to digest. The study runs concurrently with the game bird hunting season, which kicked off on November 2, and will go on through January 26, 2025.
Participating hunters are encouraged to collect and hand in crop samples from birds they harvest on public hunting domains across the island. The point here is to better manage to figure out what precisely the birds are snacking on in these areas, which will then inform conservation and land management strategies. For those hunters looking to contribute to this citizen-science initiative, detailed information can be found on a flyer posted at hunter check-in stations, or on the Department of Land and Natural Resources website .
If you're interested or need help getting involved, contact the Hilo DOFAW office. You can reach them at 808-974-4221..
