Bee biodiversity barometer on Fiji

New species described as environment changes

Date:  September 23, 2019

Source:  Flinders University

The biodiversity buzz is alive and well in Fiji, but climate change, noxious weeds and multiple human activities are making possible extinction a counter buzzword.

Just as Australian researchers are finding colourful new bee species, some of them are already showing signs of exposure to environmental changes.

Flinders University PhD candidate James Dorey -- whose macrophotography has captured some of Fiji's newest bee species -- says the naming of nine new species gives researchers an opportunity to highlight the risks.

"Homalictus terminalis is named so to indicate that, like many Fijian bees, it is nearing its limit and is at risk of climate-related extinction," he says.

"Found only on Mount Batilamu near the city of Nadi, where many tourists launch their holidays, H. terminalis has only been found within 95 metres of the mountain peak."

South Australian university students on the Australian Government's New Colombo overseas study program have gone to Fiji in the south-west Pacific for several years, naming nine new species in one of their latest research publications in Zootaxa.

The impressive black Homalictus achrostus, featuring unusual large mandibles, is one of the most interesting endemic bee species on Fiji.

But, like many Fijian bee species, H. achrostus has only ever found on a single mountain top.

Continued

Iguana captive breeding program in Fiji posts first positive results

A group of endangered iguanas introduced to the Fijian island of Monuriki two months ago have been tracked down and appear to be healthy

Monica Tan

Tuesday 14 July 2015 03.54 BSTLast modified on Tuesday 14 July 201504.48 BST

Scientists have welcomed the first results of a captive breeding program aimed at saving a group of critically endangered Fijian crested iguanas, the first such attempt to reintroduce a species in that country.

Some of the iguanas that were introduced to the Fijian island of Monuriki two months ago have been tracked down by scientists and appear to be healthy.

A total of 32 iguanas were microchipped and released, with tiny radio transmitters glued to the tails of 11 for tracking purposes. Nine were recovered on Sunday.

US Geological Survey biologist Robert Fisher reported all had increased in length and lost their excessive weight. A lean diet of native plants had evidently “sorted them out,” he said. There was no evidence of trauma or other health issues.

This is the first time Fiji has bred an endangered species in captivity and introduced it into the wild, with the National Trust for Fiji implementing a 2010 International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) species recovery plan.

Continued ...

Fiji Marine reserve ‘swarming with sharks’

Study by WCS and University of Western Australia finds reef sharks two to four times more abundant in a marine reserve compared to nearby fished areas

July 2013. Fiji's largest marine reserve contains more sharks than surrounding areas that allow fishing, evidence that marine protected areas can be good for sharks, according to researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Western Australia.

2-400% more sharks

In a study of the no-take reserve's shark populations, the researchers found that the number of sharks in Namena Reserve-located on the southern coast of Fiji's Vanua Levu Island-is two to four times greater than in adjacent areas where fishing is permitted.

The researchers conducted their study during a three-week period in 2009 in Namena, a 60-square-kilometer reserve established in 1997 and managed by local communities. In order to survey the sharks, Goetze and the WCS Fiji team used stereo baited remote underwater video systems to record data at eight sites within the reserve and eight outside the reserve at both shallow and deeper depths (between 5-8 metres, and 25-30 metres respectively).

"The study not only provides evidence that Fiji's largest marine reserve benefits reef sharks, but achieves this in a non-destructive manner using novel stereo video technology," said Goetze, the lead author of the paper.

Continued

Boa Spotted Eating Endangered Iguana for First Time

Douglas Main, Staff Writer 

Date: 25 April 2013 Time: 10:46 AM ET

The Pacific boa usually eats skinks and geckos, and other small reptiles on the islands of Fiji where it is found. But it also has a more concerning prey: the endangered Fiji banded iguana, which is much larger than its common prey and — more importantly ­— deemed endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

A photo taken by Robert Fisherand his colleagues at the U.S. Geological Survey is the first time the boa has been observed eating this iguana, which was only discovered in 2008, according to ABC Science. The iguana is named Brachylophus bulabula, after the Fijian word for "hello" (bulabula).

The iguana's future is somewhat grim. There were once five species of iguanas in this genus (the taxonomic classification above species) on the Fijian islands. Two species have already gone extinct, due to habitat loss and predation from feral cats and mongooses, and another species is critically endangered, ABC Science reports.

http://www.livescience.com/29040-boa-eats-endangered-iguana.html

Indiscriminate Sea Turtle Slaughter In FiJi – via Herp Digest

Fiji Times 12/8/12 by Luke Rawala

Turtles continued to be slaughtered despite protective legislation with some villagers unnecessarily seeking approval to eat the marine creatures during functions.

Speaking to villagers on the island of Galoa, Bua, Fisheries officer Ului Tuinamata said the number of sea turtles was dropping rapidly with some species on the verge of extinction.

He said some people were slaughtering turtles for trivial events.

"We hear of turtles being slaughtered every now and then for occasions which are very minor in nature in comparison to the dangerous position these poor creatures are in with regards to their numbers," said Mr Tuinamata.

"Slaughtering of sea turtles is illegal and it is only approved for traditional functions, which has to be applied for in writing prior to any traditional event."

"Applications are forwarded to the provincial or district offices who will then direct the application to the Minister for Primary Industries for his approval," he said.

Mr Tuinamata said the processing of permits took 14 days and that people needed to work within these procedures.

"People need to realise that our turtle numbers are rapidly dropping and to appreciate the value of these creatures including the vari voce (sea wrasse), dairo (bech-de-mer). They should think of the future and contribute to their sustainability," he said.

"We continue to receive applications to slaughter turtles for minor events. While we do not allow them and there are processes in place, the onus is still on natural resource owners to ensure that they are strictly followed to ensure the future existence of these innocent creatures," he said.

The fisheries officer was part of a touring government delegation.

He also said there was a need to establish an active network with villagers to allow for the monitoring of sea turtles.

Fish 'Bodyguards' Protect Coral from Seaweed Attack

When one kind of coral is under attack from killer seaweed, it sends chemical signals to little fish "bodyguards" that come to its rescue and handily take care of the problem, new research shows.

In their experiments, a group of scientists exposed sets of a rapidly growing coral from around Fiji (Acropora nasuta), to filaments of the seaweed species Chlorodesmis fastigiata, which is chemically toxic to corals. Some corals in the study were occupied by one-inch fish called gobies, which, within minutes, would begin neatly biting away at the offending seaweed.

"These little fish would come out and mow the seaweed off so it didn't touch the coral," study researcher Mark Hay, a biologist at the Georgia Institute of Technology, said in a statement. "This takes place very rapidly, which means it must be very important to both the coral and the fish. The coral releases a chemical and the fish respond right away."

Read on: http://www.livescience.com/24662-fish-bodyguards-protect-coral-from-seaweed-attack.html

More turtle sightings in Fiji – via Herp Digest

The Fiji Times Online, Felix Chaudhary, Wednesday, October 31, 2012

THE Mamanuca Environment Society (MES) has reported a significant increase in the number of turtle sightings so far this year.

MES project manager Betani Salusalu said recent research conducted in the Mamanuca Group revealed a major change in the nesting behaviour of the sea creatures.

"The traditional nesting session for sea turtles in Fiji is from October to April but the trend has changed in the Mamanucas this year. We have noticed that nesting has continued throughout the year.

"Some of the nesting sites like South Sea Island, Vomo Island, Tavarua Island and Monuriki Island are still experiencing hatchlings even though it's the nesting session," he said.

Mr Salusalu said the increased sightings and change in nesting meant their turtle project worked.

Search for Fiji petrels nest continues

Encouraging signs, but no nests yet - Courtesy of Birdlife
August 2012. It looked like ‘just another forested hillside' but Bob and Tar - the Fiji Petrel detector Dogs proved otherwise - they found the first significant colony of Vulnerable Collared Petrels to date.

‘Detector dogs'
It is extremely hard work quartering the steep forested hillsides of Gau with the detector dogs and where the dogs go, the handlers have to follow. Eleazar O'Conner and Poasa Qalo have taken the dogs up hills and down slopes which show no signs that anyone has ever been there before. But all the forest on Gau Island has to be methodically checked for nesting petrels. 

Collared petrels, but no cigar
Nearly four months of searches had so far produced 8 burrows either occupied of being excavated during nocturnal visits by their owners. All were known or considered to be Collared Petrel nests.

Burrowscope
Delaisavu, an unremarkable hillside above the village of Navukailagi in the north of the island didn't look very special. But the Bob and Tar proved otherwise. Loosely scattered on the steep slope, 25 burrows have been found and registered in the database - the world's first ever well-documented colony of the Collared Petrel. Each burrow is inspected with the ‘burrowscope' - but not all reveal their owners as some of the burrows are more than the two metre length of the burrowscope and others have right angle bends that the burrowscope cannot get round. So there is still much to be learned. It is quite possible that one of the burrows could belong to a Fiji Petrel.

For Eleazar and Poasa, the find could not have come at a better time - a great reward for an enormous amount of effort. For the dogs, Bob and Tar, finding the burrows reinforces their training and the congratulations and attention showered on them after each find, helps to keep them searching hard for more. For the Fiji Petrel Project, this is tremendous progress and the possibility of finding a Fiji Petrel nesting burrow, after nearly 30 years of intermittent research is looking like a distinct possibility.

Fiji petrels

Fiji petrels are one of the world's least known birds. First recognised in 1855 from a single specimen found Gau Island, and only seen recorded just a few times since, Fiji petrels are considered Critically Endangered. Their nesting grounds have never been found, but it i sthought that Gau is the most likely spot.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/fiji-petrel-nest.html

Fiji fishing experiment – It doesn’t take long to trash fish stocks

Fiji fishing fundraiser breaks the coral reef "bank"
March 2012. A protected coral reef in Fiji briefly opened for an intensive five-week fishing season was largely depleted of its fish populations and has been slow to recover, according to a study by the Wildlife Conservation Society.

In the first study of its kind, conservationists with WCS's Marine Program examined the environmental impact of an intensive fishing event-conducted by three villages in 2008 to pay for both school and church fees and provincial levies-on a formerly protected reef system.

Commercial fish almost disappeared
Predictably, the research team found that the reef's populations of large-bodied, commercially valuable species (surgeonfish, parrotfish, snapper, grouper, etc.) were severely depleted during the harvest, which lasted for five weeks, and some species were fished out entirely (the target of 12,000 Fiji dollars was achieved in the first day, but the fishing continued). Other species, the team speculated, may have simply fled to an adjacent reef outside of the fishing area.

After returning a year later, the marine scientists recorded a significantly lower fish biomass (a tally of all species based on visual surveys) in the reef than the previous year before the harvest. The findings also suggested that fishers may have continued to fish even after the fishing ban was reinstated.

Fishing to pay bills
The idea for the study was prompted by an announcement from the residents of the three villages on Kia Island. Seeking to raise funds to pay for needed services and taxes, the villagers temporarily opened a coastal no-take zone with a goal of generating 12,000 Fiji dollars (approximately $7,500) in fish and sea cucumbers. WCS researchers had surveyed the reef sites just prior to the announced harvests.

"We realized this would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to directly assess the impacts of a huge harvest event in a coral reef normally closed to fishing," said Dr. Stacy Jupiter, lead author of the study. "Many studies have examined the vulnerability of reef systems to overfishing. In this instance, we had a baseline in what was a protected area, followed by a survey of the site one month into the harvest and then a year later to gather evidence of recovery."

Read on:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/fiji-reefs.html

Old and new knowledge combine to protect Fiji's fish

Efforts to protect precious marine biodiversity by combining science and local knowledge are difficult but can work, reports Naomi Antony.

Along the coastline of Fiji, threatened fishing communities have been combining the ancient and the new in their fight to conserve precious marine resources.

Together with traditions remembered from centuries ago and community approaches to marine management, they are harnessing modern science to regain their livelihoods, and contribute to international efforts to safeguard the oceans.

But finding a balance between the local and the scientific has proved tricky. Without science, communities risk pursuing practices that have little long-term impact. But too much science can trample on a community's way of doing things — destroying the morale that lies at the heart of local conservation.


Read more:  http://www.environmental-expert.com/articles/old-and-new-knowledge-combine-to-protect-fiji-s-fish-281478

Goats and rats removed from two Fijian islands

Invasive species Cast Away in Fiji
December 2011. Goats and rats have been removed from two Fijian islands in a joint operation conducted by BirdLife International's Fiji Programme and the National Trust of Fiji aimed at protecting unique wildlife on Monuriki and Kadomo. "This is a massive achievement which will provide benefits for the iguanas, birds, plants and people of these islands", said Sialesi Rasalato from BirdLife International.

Seabirds and iguana
The Mamanuca island chain is a well-known tourist destination and nationally important for some unique and threatened wildlife. The islands of Monuriki and Kadomo are among Fiji's most critical islands for burrowing seabirds and endemic iguana.

Critically Endangered Fijian Crested Iguana
Monuriki was the location for the Tom Hanks film Cast Away which depicts his successful attempts to survive on the island following a plane crash. In real life, the 41 hectare island is home to less than a hundred Critically Endangered Fijian Crested Iguana Brachylophus vitiensis which are found on only a few islands, in the dry western side of the Fijian archipelago. Both Monuriki and Kadomo also provide vital habitat for nationally significant breeding colonies of Wedge-tailed ShearwaterPuffinus pacificus. Thousands of the fish-eating seabirds have excavated burrows across the islands in which to rear their chicks, and can be heard making their strange ‘baby-crying' calls after dark.

In 1999 and 2003, the National Trust of Fiji surveyed a few islands in the Mamanuca Group detecting a rapid decline in the iguana population as a result of major habitat degradation by goats. In 2009, BirdLife International undertook surveys that showed that rats and goats were also posing severe threats to the breeding seabirds on both islands.

Introduced by humans and alien to Fiji, rats eat many life forms including eggs, seeds, and insects, whilst goats eat all plants within reach and trample fragile seabird burrows.

Together these pests have substantially altered the ability of native plants and animals to exist on the islands and, if left unchecked, would lead to the loss of many including the shearwaters and iguanas. "Most documented extinctions, and present causes for decline among Pacific island birds, are the result of invasive alien species like rats and goats", said Elenoa Seniloli of BirdLife International.

Eradication of goats and rats
To deal with these threats, the National Trust of Fiji and BirdLife International carried out an intensive and complex operation to rid the two islands permanently of goats and rats.

For the goats, those that could be mustered and caught - by the local Yanuya Rugby Team - were taken to the mainland, while all remaining animals were later eliminated by professional hunters from New Zealand using trained sniffer dogs. The rats were eradicated by spreading specially-formulated rodenticide from a helicopter in a hi-tech procedure using GPS equipment and a specifically designed spreader bucket which could calibrate required bait-drops. If no sign of either pest are detected after two years, Monuriki and Kadomo islands will be officially declared rat and goat-free.

It's now vitally important that these alien creatures don't return, and project partners are calling for all visitors to check their boats and equipment for unwanted stowaways before landing on the islands. "It has taken years of preparation and work to rid these introduced pest animals from Monuriki and Kadomo, and a careless visitor could bring them back in a day", said Jone Niukula of the National Trust of Fiji.

"We ask visitors to be especially careful", added Joeli Vadada - landowner and National Trust of Fiji Volunteer Ranger for Monuriki Island. "Visitors to the islands need to check everything before they go ashore for stowaway seeds, lizards, rodents and insects."

BirdLife is now developing a bio-security programme that will provide further information and training to the Islands communities and tourist operators, enabling them to prevent pests from getting back to the Islands. "We also intend to work with the landowners in developing projects that enable them to benefit from the islands natural resources in a sustainable way such as through eco-tourism", noted Mrs Seniloli.

12th Island restored
This is the 12th successful island restoration programme completed by the BirdLife International Fiji Programme. With over 300 islands in Fiji there are many opportunities to eradicate unwanted pests and improve the future for biodiversity and people.

The planning, consultations, financing, technical assistance and implementation of the goat and rat operations have required numerous partnerships within Fiji and around the world. In communicating the project's success, BirdLife International and the National Trust of Fiji acknowledge that this result would not have been possible without the efforts of many, including Nadroga/Navosa Provincial Council, the Fiji Department of Environment, the Fiji Police Force, Biosecurity Authority of Fiji, Mamanuca Environment Society, the Pacific Invasives Initiative, Ross Wharfe, Luke Robertson, New Zealand Department of Conservation, skilled hunters, the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, the UK Darwin Initiative, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund and European Community and the landowners of Monuriki and Kadomo Mataqali Vuna-i-vi and Mataqali Namatua, Taukei Yanuya, and the village of Yanuya (Koro ko Yanuya).

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/do/ecco.py/view_item?listid=1&listcatid=1&listitemid=12364

The Magnificent Seven (rat free Fijian islands)

Two years after the BirdLife International Fiji Programme implemented an operation to eradicate rats from the Ringgold Islands, all seven islands have been confirmed rodent-free. Early monitoring also shows that the birds, people and wider wildlife of these remote islands are already benefitting from the removal of these invasive pests. BirdLife staff are continuing to work with local people to ensure the rats don’t return.


Located to the northeast of Taveuni, Fiji, the Ringgold Islands hold internationally important numbers of nesting seabirds. Seabird populations here, as elsewhere in the Pacific, were suffering because of rats, which eat eggs and nestlings. The Ringgolds are also an important source of natural resources and income for the islands’ landowners.

In August 2008, the BirdLife Fiji programme began working closely with the two landowning clans, Yavusa Naqelelevu and Mataqali Qilo, to eradicate the rats. A specially formulated rodent bait was dropped on the islands from a helicopter.

Among the positive changes recorded since 2008 Bridled Tern Sterna anaethetus have been observed for two of the seven islands. This species was not previously known in the area, and its appearance is a promising sign that birds vulnerable to the impacts of rats will establish breeding colonies.

In mid-November 2010, BirdLife’s Fiji team led a survey of the Ringgold Islands. Colonies of Lesser Frigatebird Fregata ariel, Black Noddy Anous minutus and Brown Booby Sula leucogaster were recorded. These populations represent over 1% of the global number for each species, and qualify the island group as an Important Bird Area.


In addition, nationally significant numbers of Red-footed Booby Sula sula, Brown Noddy Anous stolidus, Common White Tern Gygis alba, and the globally Vulnerable Bristle-thighed Curlew Numenius tahitiensis were also present.

Significant numbers of turtle nests were recorded on three islands and skink activity had also increased, particularly the Pacific Black Skink Emoia nigra, which is listed under Fiji’s Endangered and Protected Species Act.

The eradication programme was only the first step in keeping these islands free of rats and other foreign pests. Biosecurity plans have been developed for all the islands, and village representatives have been trained in techniques to prevent the introduction of alien species.

“BirdLife urges all visitors to these islands to check their boats and equipment for stowaway rats prior to departure”, said Mr Sialisi Rasalato, BirdLife Fiji programme Conservation Officer. “The introduction of just one pregnant rat would be enough to undo all the hard work, and set the clock back to a time where the islands were crawling with rats.”


Sia Rasalato added that the BirdLife International Fiji programme is grateful to the two land owning clans for their support. “Without this, the eradication and the islands’ ongoing pest free status would not have been possible.”

In association with the landowning communities, BirdLife has established a Site Support Group – the Ringgold Seabird Committee – to lead the islands’ management, communicate the results of the eradication, and champion the islands’ protection among the wider communities.

The seven islands are traditionally under the District (tikina) of Laucala. Mr Josefa Tale, the Mata ni Tikina (Laucala District representative), heads the SSG, and provides a link to the Cakaudrove Provincial Council in achieving support for the islands protection.

Mr Tale has affirmed the interest of the landowners in protecting the islands from invasive species such as rats.

“In order to achieve this, we the island owners must ensure that the islands continue to be rat free. On behalf of the Ringgold Seabird Committee and the Ringgolds Community, I therefore ask visitors to be especially careful when visiting the Ringgolds”, said Mr Tale.

Mr Tevita Mereti of Naqelelevu village thanked BirdLife International Fiji programme for eradicating rats off the islands, as they were damaging the islands unique biodiversity, and ruining their plantation crops and food stores. He urged fishermen and others who may visit the islands to check their boats and equipment for possible stowaways.


“It has taken years of preparation and work to get rid of rats; a careless visitor could bring it back in a day, so we ask visitors to be especially careful” concluded Mr Mereti.

The BirdLife Seabird Island Restoration programme is supported by the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Darwin Initiative. Assistance to the programme has also been provided by the Pacific Invasives Initiative, the Pacific Invasives Learning Network, and the New Zealand Department of Conservation. The Fiji Department of Environment and wider Fiji Government have also supported the island restoration programme.

http://www.birdlife.org/community/2010/12/the-magnificent-seven-rat-free-fijian-islands/

New species of fresh water fish found

Verenaisi Raicola
Thursday, July 22, 2010

TWO new scientific papers have been published highlighting the discovery of two new species of freshwater fishes unique to Fiji and only known from two river systems in Vanua Levu.

Wetlands International-Oceania staff Aaron Jenkins and Kinikoto Mailautoka made the new discoveries as part of surveys for the Ecosystem Based Management project.

This month, the scientific paper entitled "Hippichthys albomaculosus, a new species of freshwater pipefish (Pisces: Syngnathidae) from Fiji" was released in Aqua, International Journal of Ichthyology, co-authored by Mr Jenkins and Kinikoto Mailautoka.

This handsome pipefish was found in a small mangrove lined tributary near the mouth of the Dreketi River and is distinguished from other species by several characteristics including 10-11 white spots on the lower trunk region.

This species reaches around 9cm long and the males carry the eggs in a trunk pouch until they hatch.

This paper is significant as not only is it Fiji's newest endemic animal species, it is the first new freshwater pipefish (related to a seahorse) to be discovered in about the past 30 years.

Taxonomic description work was all done in-country, based out of the USP and, recognising the capacity being built in country, the second author is the first indigenous Fijian to have co-authored a new species of fish.

The second new species of fish was also first collected by the Wetlands International-Oceania team but described overseas by Dr. Helen Larson of the Northern Territory Museum.

As part of a large review paper last month in the international journal Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, the new freshwater goby, Redigobius lekutu has been described.

The species gains its name from the Lekutu river where it was first discovered although it is also now known from the Dreketi river system.

This species is significant as it also is only known from Vanua Levu and only generally in clean water in the upper catchment areas of these two rivers with high forest cover and nowhere else on earth.

It only reaches about 2.5 cm in length and is threatened by catchment disturbances such as logging, invasive species and gravel extraction in particular.

Mr Jenkins, a fish biologist who manages Wetlands International work in the region and also represents Oceania to the global IUCN/WI Freshwater Fish Specialist Group states, "These recent publications are timely to help remind us of the unique and fragile nature of Fijian freshwaters and aquatic biodiversity. Only over the last decade or so are we beginning to gain a clear picture of the global uniqueness of Fijian and other Pacific Island freshwater fish faunas."

http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=152099

Creature drives villagers ashore

Creature drives villagers ashore

Theresa Ralogaivau
Tuesday, June 29, 2010

A STRANGE looking marine creature reportedly spotted in lagoon waters of three villages in Cakaudrove are keeping fishermen and divers away from sea. Naiqaqi Village headman Jepeca Nakuvu said villagers from the neighbouring village of Laucala and Valeni were scared of going out to sea because of the creature.

Ateca Disukavanua, 50, said she was fishing near a copse of mangrove called Dogodogo on Monday when she saw a black creature swimming towards her. "At first I thought it was a log but then it moved closer and I was so scared because the water was up to my waist I jumped on top of a mangrove stump," she said. "I hung on to that mangrove tree for about an hour and the creature, which was about three foot long, and had flippers like that of a turtle and had a strange long mouth.

"I had never seen such a thing before in my life. I was shaking because it kept hanging around as if it smelt the place where I was standing. I only got down when the tide went out and the water was only ankle high."

Mr Nakuvu said men from the three villages armed themselves with cane knives, digging forks and spears and looked for the creature hoping to kill it. "When we know it is dead we will go out to sea because we are scared because this is something that we are not familiar with," he said.

The village headman said they had lodged a complaint at the Savusavu Police Station.

http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=150916