Tetiaroa Society

EDUCATION, CONSERVATOIN, AND RESEARCH ACTIVITIES RELATED TO TROPICAL ISLAND SOCIO-ECOSYSTEMS.

TETIAROA SOCIETY HELPS SUPPORT THE OPERATION OF AN ECOSTATION, LOCATED ON MOTU ONETAHI, ONE OF THE 12 ISLETS OF TETIAROA (33 MILES NORTH OF TAHITI, FRENCH POLYNESIA), AS A FACILITY ACCESSIBLE TO SCIENTISTS, VOLUNTEERS, CULTURAL ADVISORS, TEACHERS AND STUDENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. IT ALSO SERVES AS A BASE FOR THE SOCIETY'S COMMUNITY OUTREACH, EDUCATION, AND CONSERVATION PROGRAMS. THE ECOSTATION IS A DYNAMIC AND POWERFUL TOOL IN OUR MISSION TO CREATE SUSTAINABLE INTERDEPENDENCE. DESIGNED AND BUILT TO LEAD PLATINUM STANDARDS, THE ECOSTATION ALLOWS SCIENTISTS AND STUDENTS TO BE INSPIRED BY TETIAROA'S UNIQUE, NATURAL ENVIRONMENT WHILE THEIR WORK IS INTEGRATED WITH IT. THE RESEARCH CONDUCTED AT THE ECOSTATION AND ON TETIAROA SERVES AS A LIVING CASE STUDY, WHERE THE LESSONS LEARNED CAN BE IMPLEMENTED LOCALLY AND APPLIED TO PLACES ACROSS THE GLOBE, CREATING A RIPPLE EFFECT OF SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION.RESEARCH AND PROGRAM ACTIVITIES CONDUCTED VIA THE ECOSTATION IN 2021 WERE:TETIAROA ATOLL RESTORATION PROGRAM (TARP): THIS PROGRAM AIMS TO RESTORE SEABIRD POPULATIONS AND TO ESTABLISH TETIAROA AS A SANCTUARY FOR SEABIRDS, GREEN SEA TURTLES, COCONUT CRABS, AND TRANSLOCATED ENDANGERED ENDEMIC BIRDS. WE ARE LEVERAGING THE UNIQUE CAPACITY OF THE SITE AND OUR PARTNERS TO SCIENTIFICALLY ESTABLISH THE VALUE OF ATOLL RESTORATION FOR CORAL REEF CONSERVATION. KEY COMPONENTS OF THE 2021 TARP PROGRAM WERE:1. CORAL REEF: RESEARCH TO ASSESS THE IMPACTS OF RAT ERADICATION AND THE SUBSEQUENT RETURN OF HEALTHY SEABIRD POPULATION ON THE HEALTH THE ADJACENT REEFS ON TETIAROA.2. PLANTS: SET UP OF TEN NEW TRANSECT ON MOTU AUROA AND ADDED TO OUR SEEDLING RECRUITMENT PROTOCOL A VISUAL ASSESSMENT OF HERBACEOUS PLANT COVER IN ORDER TO MONITOR THE POTENTIAL CHANGES IN ABUNDANCE OF THE CREEPING HERB BOERHAVIA TETRANDRA, THE SUCCULENT PORTULACA CF. OLERACEA, AND THE TERRESTRIAL FER MICROSORUM GROSSUM.3. BIRD SURVEY: ONE MAJOR BENEFIT OF THE RAT ERADICATION PROGRAM IS THAT SEABIRD ABUNDANCES ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE, RESTORING BOTH SEABIRD POPULATIONS AND THE NUTRIENT INPUTS THEY PROVIDE. UNDERSTANDING HOW SEABIRDS RESPOND TO RAT ERADICATION IS AN IMPORTANT STEP IN UNDERSTANDING THE EFFECTS OF RAT ERADICATION ON THE ENTIRE ECOSYSTEM.4. UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON BIRD STUDY: ACTIVITIES HAVE INCLUDED DETERMINING ACTIVITY AND ABUNDANCE OF SEABIRDS ACROSS THE ATOLL IN ORDER TO EVALUATED CHANGES AFTER RAT ERADICATION, MONITORING NESTING SUCCESS AND BANDING BIRDS TO ESTIMATE SURVIVAL AND MOVEMENT OF THE LONG TERM.5. ALGAE: OBJECTIVE IS TO LAUNCH A PRELIMINARY MARINE FLORA INVENTORY OF TETIAROA. 6. INVERTEBRATES: OBJECTIVE IS TO UNDERSTAND HOW TERRESTRIAL INVERTEBRATES, AND THUS ECOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS, CHANGE FOLLOWING INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT.OTHER RESEARCH PROGRAMS INCLUDED:1. MAPPING TETIAROA: IN 2021, THE TEAM WORKED ON MAPPING AND GROUND TRUTHING A HABITAT MAP THAT WILL ALLOW RESEARCHERS TO PREDICT AND TEST FUTURE CHANGE TO THE TERRESTRIAL SYSTEM AFTER RAT ERADICATION.2. MOSQUITO ABATEMENT: IN 2021, THE COVID CRISIS CONTINUED TO IMPACT THE MOSQUITO PILOT OPERATIONS IN TETIAROA. MOSQUITO MONITORING CONTINUE FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR.3. SHARK RESEARCH PROGRAM: IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY AND THE CENTRE DE RECHERCHES INSULAIRES ET OBSERVATOIRE DE L'ENVIRONNEMENT (CRIOBE), THE FIRST LONG-TERM STUDY ON THE SPATIAL OF ECOLOGY OF SICKLEFIN LEMON AND BLACKTIP REEF SHARKS INSIDE TETIAROA BEGAN.4. SURVEY OF ZPR: 2021 MISSION IS TO MONITOR FISH AND BENTHIC POPULATIONS IN THE REGULATED FISHING AREAS (ZPR) OF TETIAROA FOR THE POLYNESIA MARINE RESOURCES DEPARTMENT.5. OCEAN ACIDIFICATION: SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS WAS MADE DURING 2021 TO DEMONSTRATE THAT WE CAN EXTRACT SUFFICIENTLY LARGE QUANTITIES OF CO2 FROM SWAC WATER TO ACIDIFY A FOUR CUBIC METER PATCH OF REEF TO YEAR-2100 LEVELS.6. SUBMARINE GROUNDWATER DISCHARGE (SGD): SGD IS KNOWN TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON NEAR-SHORE CHEMISTRY IN MANY TROPICAL ISLANDS. PRIMARY PURPOSE OF THESE INITIAL SURVEYS IS TO SUPPORT A NSF PROPOSAL TO CARRY OUT THE FULL RESEARCH. WE ARE COLLABORATING WITH CSU NORTHRIDGE ON THIS PROJECT.7. GREEN SEA TURTLE RESEARCH: FIELD WORK IN 2021 INCLUDED:A. RESEARCH ON NESTING FEMALESB. RESEARCH ON EGGS AND HATCHLING SURVIVAL RATESC. RESEARCH ON CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTD. RESEARCH ON PREDATION IMPACT

THE BLUE CLIMATE INITIATIVE ("BCI") IS TETIAROA SOCIETY'S GLOBAL EFFORT TO COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE WITH OCEAN-RELATED SOLUTIONS. THIS INITIATIVE BRINGS TOGETHER SCIENTISTS, COMMUNITY LEADERS, ENTREPRENEURS, BUSINESS LEADERS AND INFLUENCERS TO ACCELERATE OCEAN-RELATED SOLUTIONS TO THE GREATEST ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS HUMANKIND HAS CONFRONTED: CLIMATE CHANGE. BCI'S WORK IN 2021 INCLUDED: ORGANIZATION AND SPONSORSHIP OF A GLOBAL CHALLENGE ENTITLED "COMMUNITY AWARDS FOR OCEAN-RELATED CLIMATE SOLUTION AND THEN GRANTING OF AWARDS AND PROVIDING A SUPPORTING ROLE FOR COMMUNITY PROGRAMS IN TANZANIA, THE PHILIPPINES, PALAU, PERU, FRENCH POLYNESIA, AND THE BAHAMAS. ORGANIZATION AND SPONSORSHIP OF A GLOBAL $1 MILLION "OCEAN INNOVATION CHALLENGE" WHICH ENCOURAGED, INSPIRED, FACILITATED AND SUPPORTED THE DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND ENTREPRENEURIAL OCEAN-RELATED SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE. ORGANIZATION AND SPONSORSHIP OF AN EDUCATION PROGRAM IN FRENCH POLYNESIA REGARDING OCEAN PROTECTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE. WORK ON VARIOUS PROGRAMS SUPPORTING OCEAN PROTECTION AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE.IN 2022, BCI SPONSORED A GLOBAL SUMMIT ON OCEAN RELATED SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE WHICH HELPED ADVANCE MANY OF THE PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS THAT BCI AND COLLABORATORS WORKED ON IN 2021.