HIFB will take place on October 26 from 9am to 5:30pm at the Grand Naniloa Hotel Hilo. (Schedule below)
The goal of the festival is to come together as a community to celebrate native bird species in Hawai‘i and fight against hopelessness in the face of tough conservation challenges. Through the sharing of manaʻo and enthusiasm, the festival aims to uplift and motivate. This year’s festival theme is Celebrating Connection.
Media: Download the Press Release
Merch: Check out the 2024 HIFB Shirt
Promotion: Download the 2024 HIFB Flyer
Presale has ended. Admission will still be available at the door.
Tickets purchased at the door will be $25 general admission, $20 student rate, keiki 12 and under free.
Both paid presale and at-the-door tickets come with a $5 Birdie Bucks coupon to use or donate at bird fair.
Click Here to Check out the 2024 HIFB Shirt
Official festival merchandise is available for purchase now! Get your shirts and gear early to wear to the event. Please note festival apparel is only available online. There will be no festival apparel for sale at the event. Available until November 1, 2024.
Throughout the Day…
New This year: Soundbaths in the Crown Room
Not the wet kind of bath, no towels required. We will be featuring soundscapes throughout the presentation program featuring many different native bird species. Immerse yourselves in these soundbaths, created and composed by UH Hilo LOHE Bioacoustic Lab’s Ann Tanimoto-Johnson, narrated by Dr. Patrick Hart. As you listen to the soundscapes, we hope you will be able to imagine a Hawai‘i so naturally abundant in native birdsong and life.
Bird Trivia in the Crown Room
We will be asking trivia questions in the morning (to get the brain warmed up!) and after lunch, with additional questions spread out throughout the day. Answer a question correctly to win prizes.
FULL FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
Bird Fair 9:00AM – 5:30PM:
Please note that Bird Fair rooms will close temporarily from 10-10:30AM to allow our vendors and exhibitors the opportunity to attend the opening presentation in the Crown Room. Bird Fair rooms will reopen at 10:30AM.
Learning Lounge Booths on Lobby Lānai (free to the public, no wristband required)
| Hawaiʻi DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife | ʻŌhiʻa Love (University of Hawaiʻi Cooperative Extension Rapid Ohia Death Program) | The Wildlife Society Hawaiʻi Chapter & Beginner Bird School | Keauhou Bird Conservation Center | ʻImiloa Astronomy Center | Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project | Hawaiʻi Land Trust |
Optics Demos on Lawn (free to the public, no wristband required)
Binocular and spotting scope demos, courtesy of Kowa Sporting Optics. Have any questions about the best optics for birding? Here’s a good chance to get those questions answered!
Bird Fair in Hoʻomalimali, Sandalwood, and Palm Rooms (HIFB wristband required):
| Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center | Conservation Council for Hawaiʻi | Kōlea Hop Water | Mountain House Stained Glass (Artist: Claudia McCall) | ʻApapane Pottery (Artist: Emily Herb) | Laulima | Friends of Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge | Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project and ʻAlalā Project | Birds Not Mosquitoes | ʻĀina Hoʻōla Initiative | Kō Kākou ʻĀina | Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association | Haleakalā National Park | Tommy Atkins Photography | Hawaiʻi Audubon Society | Nēnē Research and Conservation | Tropical Funk (Artist: Jackie Milligan) | Wandering Finch (Artist: Joanna Maney) | Kahua ‘Āina | Patrick Ching | Esther Szegedy | Caren Loebel-Fried | Sarah Taylor Ko | Nā Ala Hele | Autochthonous Hawaiʻi (Artist: Saxony Charlot) | Oglesby Art | Island Nation | Charlotte Forbes Perry | Laupahoehoe Graphics | Margaret Barnaby | Silent Auction Tables (auction closes at 4:30) |
Kōlea Hop Water samples in the Hoʻomalimali Room (HIFB wristband required)
Sunday Birding Trips signups in the Hoʻomalimali Room
A limited number of free group birding walks and trips taking place the day after the festival will be available for signup on a first come first serve basis, while space is available. These spots fill up fast! This year’s Sunday Birding Trips will include four guided walks around Kaulana Manu (target: forest birds) and one guided walk around Wailoa (target: waterbirds, shorebirds, and migrants).
The last hour of the festival (4:30pm – 5:30pm), all Bird Fair areas will be free to the public and not require wristbands.
Presentations in Crown Room 10AM – 4:00PM (HIFB wristband required)
Each presentation is 15 minutes long, including any Q&A, and explores different areas of conservation and connection to the birds of Hawaiʻi.
10AM – 10:30AM Opening Presentation
Warmup bird trivia and opening soundscape
Opening ʻoli O Ka Lele a Nei ʻĀuna led by ʻĀhuimanu. The perfect way to set the intention for the day. Come prepared to join your fellow festival attendees with native bird calls
10:30AM – 12:00PM Morning Presentations
Ka Pilina – Hālau Hula Nāwehiokaipoaloha
Ka Pilina Composer: Frank Hewitt. This mele shares about a love between two people using our native manu to be the metaphor for love and passion. Our manu ʻōiwi are praised and valued for their beauty, their hulu manu (feathers) and their leo nahenahe (melodious sounds) which embrace and capture the essence of love.
Conservation Bioacoustics for Hawaii’s birds – Patrick Hart
Hawaiian forest birds keep track of each other through songs and calls. Here, we will discuss how the LOHE lab at UH Hilo records and processes these sounds to improve our ability to monitor their distribution and abundance.
The Role of Community in Conservation – Jordan Lerma
This talk by Jordan Lerma, Field Biologist and Executive Director at Nene.org, explores the essential role of community involvement in conservation. Learn about the origins of Nene.org, the innovative tools being developed to empower community action, and how community-contributed data is enhancing existing conservation efforts. The presentation will also cover applied conservation topics such as predator control, habitat management, and practical ways everyone in Hawaiʻi can help protect native species.
Finding Home; A Hawaiian Petrel’s Journey – Caren Loebel-Fried
Author and artist Caren Loebel-Fried shares her newest book featuring the ʻuaʻu (Hawaiian Petrel) and all of the efforts to protect this endangered seabird.
Predator-exclusion Fence at Hii and ʻuaʻu – Dr. Rachel Sprague
Dr. Rachel Sprague has worked with coastal and island wildlife for over 20 years. She has been on Lāna’i for almost 9 years, where she is the co-Director of Conservation for Pūlama Lānaʻi, the company that owns and manages 98% of the island of Lānaʻi for the major private landowner. Her responsibilities range from recovery of endangered species, to invasive species management, to public game hunting, to native habitat restoration and larger landscape conservation initiatives. The conservation program received the 2018 Business Leader Award from the State of Hawaiʻi’s Invasive Species Council for their work protecting seabirds and other native wildlife on Lānaʻi from invasive predators, and the company’s biosecurity efforts to prevent new species introductions.
Hawaiʻi Birding Trail Special Announcement – Laurel Ainsworth, Nā Ala Hele
12:00 – 1:00PM Lunch Break
1:00 – 1:30PM Afternoon Presentations
Bird Trivia and Soundscape
DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife Update (ʻAkēʻakē, Palila, and Kaʻu Bird Survery) – Alex Wang
1:30 – 2:15PM Papahānaumokuākea Panel
This 45-minute panel will allow us to take a deeper dive into Papahānaumokuākea, highlighting multiple perspectives and experiences among the panelists.
Moderator: Andy Collins, Education Coordinator, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.
Panelists:
Elizabeth Flint, USFWS Supervisory Wildlife Biologist
Papahānaumokuākea: Archipelago of birds | Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument is home to the largest assemblage of tropical seabirds on earth. Populations are thriving now but face a diminished future due to climate change.
J. Hauʻoli Lorenzo-Elarco, Papahānaumokuākea Cultural Working Group. Nomenclature Hui Honolulu Community College, Kumu Aʻo ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (instructor of hawaiian language)
He Manuohina Ko Ka Pō, He Manuokū Ko Ke Ao: Hawaiian Naming Practices in Papahānaumokuākea | This presentation highlights the work of the Nomenclature Hui, a subcommittee of the Papahānaumokuākea Cultural Working Group, in reclaiming Hawaiian bird names through archival research, and giving new names based in ancestral naming practices to birds that have no known Hawaiian names.
Ann M Bell, Friends of Midway Atoll Communication Directorate
Investing in People for the Birds | The Friends of Midway Atoll intentionally invest in quality outreach so the birds and their habitat receive a tangible benefit.
2:15 – 4:00PM Afternoon Presentations
Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge Management Update – Springer Kaye
Spotlighting the habitat management efforts keeping the forest healthy
E hele pū! Meet the Hawaiʻi Endangered Bird Conservation Program – Lisa Mason & Hannah Bailey
Learn about the critical work being done to conserve critically endangered birds
The Wildlife Society: Lessons from Bird School – Eric-Preston Hamren,
Reflections on the first year of Beginner Bird School up in Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge – connections made, lessons learned, and future plans.
Fashion-Forward Conservation – David Shepard
Introducing how he got started, his conservation focused mission, his artistic process, and how he collaborates with non-profit organizations to raise the profile of their work. He will also be sharing his latest Forest Bird Collection, how donations are structured, his plans and future direction, and a call to action to reach out for more collaborations.
Reuniting with our Departed Manu – Bret Nainoa Mossman
Read about Bret’s work in the latest edition of Audubon Magazine.
Final Soundscape, Mauka to Makai
Silent Auction closes at 4:30PM
Support the Hawaiʻi Island Festival of Birds and its two nonprofit hosts, the Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center and Conservation Council for Hawaiʻi, by bidding on items in the silent auction. Items were generously donated by Bird Fair vendors, HIFB presenters, and community members. Mahalo to all of our auction donors and those participating as bidders!
Bird Fair FREE Public Hour 4:30PM – 5:30PM:
During this time all Bird Fair rooms will be free and open to the public, no admission or wristbands required. Come and support all of our vendors and learn more about important conservation work being done by our nonprofit and agency exhibitors!