Dolphin Photo ID: WDF uses identifications obtained from the field to study the population parameters of the coastal dolphins using Mark- Recapture analysis.
Documentation of the Dolphin's Habitat
For a multitude of reasons, conservation for a federally protected marine mammal species is not as cut and dry as it would seem. Given this, the WDF film crew is documenting the intact resources of the Wai`anae Coast to include its culture and people as well as it's natural history. We are gearing up to arm local students with needed equipment and storytelling skills to share the tales of their culture, their land and their connection to the sea. It's well known that the first thing one has to with young people is to "get their attention." The best way to accomplish this is to go where they are, use the communication tools they use, and get them involved.
Native Hawaiians have long recognized the interconnection between the land and the ocean, and the universal value of "Aloha `Aina" and "Malama ke Kai" — loving and caring for the land and the ocean. Pacific cultures are based on a high level of environmental awareness. The relationship of people to land and of people to sea is spiritual and religious. When tourism takes away the land, the fishing grounds, or the right to gather food or medicine the Hawaiian loses a primary means of livelihood and — more important — meaning in life.
Interviews with elders, community groups, and ocean users; footage of intact and archival photos of "lost" resources, as well as environmental polluters — numerous on the coast — carefully pieced together to tell the coast's story will help to build community bridges and identify changes to be made. The coast's strongest assets are it's people and their support in reclaiming the land and ocean. The documentary project will act as a national demonstration project for local environmental protection.
Very few people see themselves as living in an important time in history — it's only on retrospect that we can see and value the power of the moment. Can you imagine if the people who greeted Captain Cook had a camcorder in their hands? Or if Queen Lilioukalani held captive in her own palace could've recorded her voice and private thoughts for us to understand. Or if we could've seen a glimpse of an ordinary day — when life was sustained in harmony with the land and the sea — wouldn't that enrich our present day lives? What we take for granted as "everyday" could be lost if not documented.
Education Platform
WDF integrates the local environment into curricula at schools throughout the area working collaboratively on developing and implementing projects that will have benefits for the children and their communities. We hope to reach as many kids as we can so that sustainability and stewardship of the coastline's marine life becomes 'second nature' for these students and their parents. Please see our volunteer page for more information about this.
The Dolphin's Habitat
REEF Survey and Reef Check: The spinner dolphin's daytime habitat is located in sandy areas surrounded by coral reefs. WDF heads the Leeward Oahu Reef Check, a community-based monitoring protocol designed to measure the health of coral reefs (and thus their surrounding habitat) on a global scale. REEF Survey monitors the fish sharing the dolphins habitat. What effects the reef and its inhabitants will also affect the dolphins. WDF will be hosting Oahu's 2nd Great Annual Fish Count on Oahu in July of 2006.
Our most recent Reef Checks were at Poka'i Bay in July and Lanikuhonua in August.
