Bush warblers provide insight to evolution

A recent study of Japanese bush warblers, which were introduced to Oahu in 1929 and are now present on each of the main Hawaiian Islands, is providing new insight into the evolution of non-native bird species in the state.

The study, conducted by a team led by Northern Arizona University researcher Jeffrey Foster, examined blood and muscle samples from 147 bush­ warblers living on five islands between 2003 and 2005.

As expected, samples collected from birds on Oahu had higher genetic diversity than those from other islands, where populations were established from a smaller pool of birds.

Kauai’s bush warblers, however, appear to be outliers.

The researchers note that Kauai, which is three times farther from Oahu than is Molokai, boasts a population of bush warblers that appear to have a “unique subset of the overall genetic diversity found elsewhere.”

Foster said the difference suggests that bird populations on the different islands will continue to diverge over time.

Foster said the invasive bush warblers provided a useful subject through which to examine bird evolution.

“Bush-Warblers first arrived on the Big Island when I was living there in the 1990s,” Foster said in a release distributed Wednesday. “The idea that one could study this invasion in progress totally blew my mind.”

Foster said the degree to which the birds are flying between islands is still unknown, which would potentially complicate the effort to distinguish differences in genetic “signals.”

He said it is also yet to be determined why it took the birds some 50 years to travel from Oahu to the other islands.

Results of the study are included in the Jan. 17 edition of the scientific journal The Auk Ornithological Advances, viewable at 808ne.ws/2mZ67ai.

Tupola to announce bid for state governor

State Rep. Andria Tupola, the highest-ranking Republican in the state Legislature, will make her candidacy for governor official at an announcement concert Saturday at the Kapolei Events Center.

The 37-year-old House minority leader has made no secret of her goal to unseat Gov. David Ige, publicly affirming her intention to run several months ago and reasserting her plans via social media in the hours after the Jan. 13 false missile alert.

Tupola is a graduate of Kamehameha Schools, Kapalama; Brigham Young University; and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She has served in the House since 2014.

Hawaii island

5 rescue surfboards donated to Big Island Fire Department

The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation, long a benefactor of the Hawaii Fire Department, donated five custom-made rescue surfboards Saturday to the Ocean Safety Division.

The presentation was made by Laura Mallery-Sayre, co-founder, outside the south lifeguard tower at Kahaluu Beach Park, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported. Rescues at Kahaluu are predominately done with a rescue board.

But the boards currently in use were made for lakes and damage quickly. The hope is that the new boards will be more durable, said Capt. Chris Stelfox of the Ocean Safety Division.

Hawaii Fire Battalion Chief Gerald Kosaki said two of the boards will stay at Kahaluu, and three will go to Hilo. He said a board is the best thing after a Jet Ski to reach a person in distress.

“They’ll also use the board to go out and do preventative measures and check on people,” Stelfox said of the lifeguards.

The $9,717 for the boards was raised by live auction Sept. 2.

Over the past 20 years, the foundation has raised $1.6 million to provide equipment for Hawaii island’s emergency responders, including the Ocean Safety Division, which became part of the department in 2007.