Papah?naumoku?KEA marine national monument (papah?naumoku?KEA) is the largest contiguous fully protected conservation area under the U.S. Flag, and one of the largest marine conservation areas in…

Papah?naumoku?KEA marine national monument (papah?naumoku?KEA) is the largest contiguous fully protected conservation area under the U.S. Flag, and one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world. The islands in papah?naumoku?KEA are one of the northern pacific oceans most isolated island archipelagos which supports an incredible diversity of coral, fish, birds, marine mammals and other flora and fauna, many of which are unique to the hawaiian island chain. This project will increase the ability to support protected resources in papah?naumoku?KEA through in-depth training of staff so that the recipient can independently conduct protected species research and recovery activities. This will be a collaborative effort with the cooperative institute for marine and atmospheric research and national oceanic and atmospheric administration to meet their shared missions conserving marine resources. This project has three overarching goals: 1) enhancing research capabilities through hands-on training with protected species, such as hawaiian monk seals and sea turtles. This will be accomplished by integrating a staff member in the national oceanic and atmospheric administration supported monk seal research camp at laysan island in papah?naumoku?KEA; 2) conduct independent protected species research initiatives across the islands and atolls within papah?naumoku?KEA. Once trained at laysan, the staff member would lead protected species research and intervention efforts during marine debris survey and removal missions within papah?naumoku?KEA; 3) enhance research capabilities in outyears (2025-2027) through various training opportunities. Additional training for staff to expand the scope of research in papah?naumoku?KEA to include additional species such as corals. The anticipated outcomes include additional data on protected species from remote locations where no other data is collected as well as an increase in lifesaving interventions for injured and entangled protected species in papah?naumoku?KEA.