The department of land and natural resources division of forestry and wildlife (dofaw),university of texas EL paso and the USFWS national wildlife refuges seek to supplement thepure koloa…

The Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) awarded a $666,787.71 Project Grant under the State Wildlife Grants (CFDA 15.634) program to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). The grant aims to supplement the population of pure Koloa (Hawaiian duck) individuals from Kauai to Oahu, where no pure Koloa population currently exists. The project's goal is to attempt genetic reversal of hybrid Koloa ducks back to a pure genetic population through a pilot study to inform future recovery actions for this endangered species. The project will address the primary threat of Koloa x feral mallard hybridization by eliminating feral mallards and hybrid ducks, as well as conduct public education and awareness on this conservation issue. The grant period is from October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2026.

The department of land and natural resources division of forestry and wildlife (dofaw),university of texas EL paso and the USFWS national wildlife refuges seek to supplement thepure koloa individuals from kauai to oahu where there is no pure koloa population. The goalof the project is to attempt genetic reversal from a hybrid to a pure genetic population through apilot study that will inform future recovery actions of this endangered species. This projectproposes to address the biggest threat to the koloa, hybridization, and addresses two conservationactions as state outlined in our state wildlife action plan. Firstly, to eliminate feral mallard andkoloa x feral mallard hybrids. Second to conduct education and awareness of the mallard koloainterbreeding problem.