Celebrate Nēnē Awareness Day in Hawaiʻi
Sept. 26 is dedicated to recognizing Hawaiʻi’s state bird.
Sept. 26 is Nēnē Awareness Day! The day celebrates Hawaiʻi’s state bird, while also highlighting the cultural significance of the endemic species and the threats it continues to face.
Nēnē, or the Hawaiian goose, are found nowhere else in the world. The birds almost went extinct in the mid-1900s. Their habitats were destroyed during the Islands’ plantation era in the 19th and 20th centuries. The introduction of foreign predators like the mongoose also devastated the population. By the 1950s, the nēnē population had collapsed and it was estimated there were less than 30 nēnē to be living in the wild—and they were only on Hawaiʻi Island.
READ MORE: 7 Fun Facts About the Hawaiian Nēnē, or Hawaiian Goose
Nēnē are found nowhere else in the world.
Photo: Getty Images/Westend61
Fortunately, through critical conservation efforts like translocation and predator fencing, the bird populations recovered throughout the Islands. By 2019, the population was estimated at 3,252, and the species was federally downlisted from endangered to threatened. The most recent published survey in 2022 estimates the population of nēnē is around 3,862. However, Hawaiʻi still considers the bird an endangered species and prioritizes recovery efforts, including public education and raising more awareness about ongoing threats.
To mark Nēnē Awareness Day, Haleakalā National Park is hosting a series of events on Sept. 26 and Sept. 27. From noon to 3 p.m. at the Headquarters Visitor Center (about a mile past the park entrance) rangers and scientists will be talking story about the iconic bird. There will also be arts, crafts and games. Rangers will also be stationed on some of the trails in the morning where the birds are frequently sighted.
READ MORE: Your Guide to Viewing Hawaiʻi’s Endangered Wildlife
When visiting Hawaiʻi’s beautiful yet fragile ecosystems, it’s imperative to mālama ʻāina and respect wildlife. The DLNR Forestry & Wildlife’s mascot, Pono the Nēnē, helps remind people how to be pono (respectful) with these tips known as the “Five Keeps.”
Five Keeps:
- Keep your food to yourself. Do not feed any birds or wildlife. It teaches animals like nēnē to come to cars, and roads and close to homes where they can be fatally injured.
- Keep your dogs on a leash. Even the best-behaved dogs can threaten or kill the birds.
- Keep your cats inside. Even regularly fed cats still practice hunting and can kill goslings.
- Keep your speed down when you see nēnē near the road. Paved roads look like pāhoehoe lava flows to nēnē. The birds need a long runway for take-off and can’t instantly fly to dodge a speeding car.
- Keep your distance. These are wild animals. Approaching them could push them into a road, keep them from eating, or drive them from a nest.
