For the first time, researchers have documented a round-trip migration of a tiger shark between Hawaiʻi and Mexico. This discovery was made by the University of Hawaiʻi at 惭腻苍辞补鈥檚 (HIMB) Shark Lab and the (PacIOOS). The finding helps advance the understanding of the species and highlights the importance of international data-sharing initiatives.

The female tiger shark was originally tagged in 碍腻苍别ʻ辞丑别 Bay, Oʻahu, in November 2016. Less than a year later, she was detected at the Revillagigedo Islands and Cabo Pulmo in Mexico by equipment maintained by Mauricio Hoyos and James Ketchum from the non-profit Pelagios Kakunj谩 in Mexico. After three years, the shark returned to Hawaiʻi, where she was consistently detected until early 2024.

“We had previously documented a shark swimming from Hawaiʻi to Mexico,” said Carl Meyer, a researcher at the HIMB Shark Lab. “However, that shark was caught by fishermen and not released, leaving uncertainty about whether these transoceanic travelers return to Hawaiʻi. This latest discovery resolves that question, providing the first direct evidence that individual tiger sharks are capable of completing round-trip migrations between Hawaiʻi and Mexico.”

Sharing data, active collaboration

This transoceanic connection was realized because both the 东精影业 and research teams from Mexico shared their data with the PacIOOS-led PIRAT Network and its partner organization Migramar. Identifying such long-range movements is extremely difficult without active collaboration. The PIRAT Network provides a data-sharing platform for researchers that automatically checks for cross-matches like this every four months, paving the way for future discoveries.

“Most detections of our tagged sharks occur within the Hawaiian Islands,” said Meyer. “This individual, for instance, was tagged off O鈥榓hu but later detected near Maui and Hawaiʻi Island, in addition to making a remarkable journey to Mexico and back.”

“Identifying long-range movements like these are often difficult, unless the researchers involved happen to collaborate directly and actively share data,” said Tom Tinhan, PIRAT Network lead. “Not only is this a valuable piece of evidence that advances our understanding of this highly migratory species, but it illustrates the importance of data sharing initiatives like these.”

While the finding confirms a round-trip migration, HIMB shark researcher Kim Holland noted that many details about the journey remain unknown. “We don’t know the route by which the shark crossed the ocean (in both directions) so it’s a little misleading, although tempting, to draw straight lines between Hawaiʻi and Mexico,” said Holland. “This event is in line with other sharks we have tracked that show offshore movements of several hundred miles before returning to Hawaiʻi.”

In a first-of-its-kind effort, a 3-meter long blue shark in the Atlantic Ocean is aiding researchers with a highly sophisticated sensor that provides oceanographic data in real time. The study is led by University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (HIMB) Research Professor Kim Holland together with colleagues at the University of the Azores. This was part of an expanding “Sharks as Oceanographers Program” funded by the .

The bathygraph (a graph of the relationship between depth and temperature) tag enables the shark to record ocean temperature as it roves the water column and transmit the data via satellite when it resurfaces. Researchers can access the data in near real time, and the tags are designed to fall off after roughly four months.

“The bathygraph tags are an example of the increasingly sophisticated animal telemetry tools that are available to scientists,” said Holland. “These tags are now able to tell us not only where the animal is, but they can also describe the environment that it is experiencing. In the future this will include parameters such as oxygen content and plankton density.”

The most recent shark to be tagged in Hawaiʻi was a 4.2-meter long tiger shark in September 2024 near Kāneʻohe Bay. It is now 280 miles away at Nihoa Island and provides a steady stream of temperature and depth profiles.

Sharks gather interesting findings

The data from both sharks is already yielding some surprising results.

“An unexpected result from the tracking experiments is how deep these supposedly coastal, or surface-oriented species, dive,” said Holland. “Both the tiger and blue sharks regularly dive to over 500 meters, where the water is much colder than at the surface.”

Tracking experiments offer a sense of “instant gratification” because the animal鈥檚 movements and the associated oceanographic data can be viewed in near-real time.

“The blue shark is now 300 miles south of where we tagged it [in the Azores], and it has already produced over 70 temperature/depth profiles,” said Holland. “So we have two sharks simultaneously in two oceans, providing critical habitat information and high quality oceanographic data.”

The HIMB will continue its efforts to provide year-round data on ocean structure in Hawaiʻi, and it plans to expand its work to include different species鈥攊ncluding blue sharks in Hawaiʻi.

–By Maria Frostic

A new for the Territory of American Samoa was released to the public, enabling the community to visualize how the shoreline is likely to change from coastal flooding, sea-level rise, hurricane storm surge and high tides.

The visualization tool will be an essential component in future planning to assess the short and long-term impacts of rising seas and to minimize the risks to coastal communities, infrastructure and the environment.

A partnership of organizations at the University of Hawaiʻi developed the American Samoa Sea Level Rise Viewer over the course of two years, with the (PacIOOS) preparing the platform for the (东精影业SLC) using funding from the (PI-CASC) and local extension facilitation from (Hawaiʻi Sea Grant).

While there are other sea-level rise viewers throughout the continental U.S. and Hawaiʻi, this mapping tool is of particular importance to American Samoa. Local sea levels have been rising from climate change effects at rates 2.8 times faster than the global average. Beyond that, ever since a devastating 2009 earthquake and tsunami, American Samoa has been actively sinking. This sinking, called subsidence, contributes even more relative change in water levels, with estimates suggesting roughly twice as much total sea-level rise, for these islands, by 2060 than what is predicted from climate effects alone.

Kelley Anderson Tagarino, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant extension agent based at the , along with local colleagues began to notice a distinct increase of sea levels in tide gauge data, beginning at the time of the 2009 earthquake. She ultimately created a partnership to develop an interactive tool demonstrating sea-level rise projections, engaging Phil Thompson, director of 东精影业SLC, and his PI-CASC graduate scholar Carla Baizeau and the PacIOOS team.

Tagarino said, “I sought funding for a sea-level rise viewer to empower our community to plan for our future. Now, everyone can use the viewer to zoom in to specific areas and even individual homes, which is critical to developing resilience plans at the village level.”

The sea-level rise viewer is already being used to inform the design of the new Pago Pago airport terminal buildings.

Threatening natural, cultural resources

Beyond critical infrastructure, the high rates of sea-level rise also threaten natural and cultural resources, agriculture, water resources, critical habitat and much more.

Alphina Liusamoa, a turtle biologist with the , is thrilled to find areas with important ecological zones included, like sea turtle nesting beaches on outer islands. “This is incredibly valuable as it allows us to comprehensively assess the risk of rising sea levels to these important nesting habitats. The tool鈥檚 interactive nature provides a valuable opportunity for education and outreach, and it can assist us in implementing conservation measures to protect these fragile ecosystems.”

Baizeau traveled from Hawaiʻi to join Tagarino and present the sea-level rise viewer to community leaders and other officials throughout the territory, and at Amerika Samoa鈥檚 2nd Annual Disaster Resilience Summit in September.

“I was lucky enough to go to American Samoa and meet with the village chiefs and students,” said Baizeau. “Everyone was very interested in learning how to use the viewer so they can start planning for their future. It has been really gratifying to be part of this project, and I hope to continue to improve on the work we鈥檝e started.”

Future plans for the tool include adding the effects of wind and wave activity.

For more information, contact: Kelley Anderson Tagarino (kelleyat@hawaii.edu); Cindy Knapman (lknapman@hawaii.edu); Rachel Lentz (rlentz@hawaii.edu) or info@PacIOOS.org.

A five-year study into the impacts of sea-level rise on the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve (HBNP) predicts 88% of the preserve鈥檚 usable beach will be underwater by 2030.

Conducted by researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (HIMB), the study evaluated the biological, physical, and social carrying capacities of this pristine natural destination; taking into account the impact of visitors to assist in planning for sustainable tourism. In Hawaiʻi, warm ocean temperatures and high water visibility draw more than 85% of tourists to ocean recreation activities, with a similar percentage of entries into Hanauma Bay (about 85%) coming from non-local visitors.

The study, which spanned the nine-month pandemic closure of HBNP in 2020, includes predictions of how the rising sea level may impact this pristine natural destination. Models show the combination of the lowest predicted sea-level rise (0.5 feet) and highest tide will result in 88% of HBNP鈥檚 usable beach being submerged by 2030. “Usable beach” is defined as the sandy area.

“The predictions of the extent that sea level will impact the usable area at Hanauma Bay was eye-opening,” said Kuʻulei Rodgers, researcher at HIMB. “It will assist management in preparation and to develop recommendations, other alternatives and solutions.”

The sea-level rise models used by Rodgers and her team were developed by the 鈥檚 Sea Level Rise Laboratory and .

Other findings in the study include fluctuations of the abundance and diversity of fish, water clarity increases during the closure, and the increased use of HBNP by local residents.

Fish flight initiation

Researchers conducted non-invasive stereo video monitoring, a two-camera technique used to create a 3D image without harming the fish, to determine the fish flight initiation distance and the minimum approach distance for different species. Basically, how close humans can get to certain fish before they swim away.

The majority of fish were more approachable and fled later during the closure. A few species such as pualu, the ringtail surgeonfish, did not appear to perceive visitors as a threat. Possibly due to their larger size. This was contradictory to wrasses and butterflyfish, which were among other species found to be less approachable upon reopening.

Also observed during the pandemic closure were increases in fish abundance and biomass. When researchers examined fish community compositional shifts they noticed a corresponding decrease in the amount and diversity of fish following the reopening of HBNP in December 2020. Most notably the “keyhole,” the most popular snorkeling location within the shallow reef flat, saw substantial increases in fish communities during the closure.

Visitor demographics

Surveys were conducted following the reopening of HBNP in December 2020. At this time, there were quarantine restrictions upon returning to Japan, which resulted in a drop of visitors from Japan from 25% in 2005 to less than 1% in 2022.

Another shift in demographics is the increase in Hawaiʻi residents from 3% in 2001 to 13% in 2022. Management has been instrumental in this change by allowing early entry for Hawaiʻi residents without reservations and the continued fee waiver.

The preservation of 贬补飞补颈ʻ颈鈥檚 nearshore ecosystem is imperative to the economic continuation of the tourism industry. In the 1980鈥檚, HBNP visitor use reached a peak of 4 million visitors annually. In 2023, visitor use is projected to be down to approximately 500,000 annually. Contributing factors include: closing HBNP two days per week, a reservation system, increased fees, and effective management strategies.

Water clarity

During the pandemic closure, the water clarity was 56% clearer as compared to prior to the closure. Following the reopening of HBNP at 25% visitor capacity, the water clarity decreased by 30%.

Other factors such as wave height contributed to decreases in water clarity along with visitor counts. However, visitors were the most influential factor.

Research that contributed to this work was published in , and .

Graduate assistants who also contributed to this research include: Andrew Graham, Yuko Stender and Shannon Murphy, and research assistant Kaylee Skidmore-Rossing.

To improve coastal community resilience nationwide, NOAA鈥檚 announced two complementary initiatives totaling $8.1 million. Of that total, the (Hawaiʻi Sea Grant) will be awarded $624,725.

Hawaiʻi Sea Grant faculty and their collaborators will lead two projects:

• improving coastal water quality across the state and forecast fecal bacteria levels in Waikīkī;
• assisting communities on the North Shore of Oʻahu to adapt to climate change, including energy, water, food sustainability, watershed restoration and more.

Margaret McManus, professor and chair of the Department of Oceanography at 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补鈥檚 is leading aspects of the water quality project. She noted “Oftentimes after storms we see brown water along our coasts. This research will allow us to determine the level of terrestrial derived sewage and fecal matter in these waters. We will be working closely with the (PacIOOS) to establish initial test sites. PacIOOS has also contributed instrumentation to support this critical work.”

Kawela Farrant, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant鈥檚 newest extension faculty and lifelong North Shore resident is leading the project on the North Shore. Farrant noted “Community members and nonprofit groups in this area have a long history of advocating for natural resource protection, sustainability initiatives, climate change adaptation, and Hawaiian cultural preservation. Direct partnership with Hawaiʻi Sea Grant will provide additional financial capacity and technical expertise to initiatives that are strongly wanted, if not driven, by the local community.”

More on the projects

Through a joint competition with the , 10 new projects were selected for a total of $3.9 million in funding to translate research into application for communities. Project activities span California, Georgia, Hawaiʻi, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Wisconsin, South Carolina and Texas. and access the full list of the USCRP-Sea Grant projects and descriptions.

Sea Grant programs across the nation received an additional total of $4.2 million in Sea Grant funds to increase local capacity, engagement, research and implementation for addressing resilience challenges. to develop and implement extension programming on 翱ʻ补丑耻鈥檚 North Shore, as well as the full list of resilience awards and descriptions awarded nationwide.

–By Cindy Knapman

In the quest to prepare for and mitigate the effects of climate change, Kauaʻi Mayor Derek Kawakami signed a historic bill on October 14, Bill No. 2879, that will regulate construction based on future sea-level rise projections. This unique measure is the result of dedicated collaboration between the University of Hawaiʻi at 惭ā苍辞补鈥檚 and the Kauaʻi County Planning Department.

This bill makes Kauaʻi one of the first counties in the nation to commit to using scientific model projections as the basis for construction and planning regulations鈥攖hus prioritizing the safety and resilience of communities, infrastructure and ecosystems.

For many years, the 东精影业 Mānoa Climate Resilience Collaborative (formerly the Coastal Geology Group) has developed innovative computer model projections of areas across the Hawaiian Islands where chronic coastal flooding and erosion are expected to occur as sea level rises in the coming decades. These published and peer-reviewed predictions are the basis for the that will now be used to ensure resilient planning and design.

“The Climate Resilience Collaborative has worked closely with the Kauaʻi County Planning Department to fine-tune the data to ensure the highest quality and create a stand-alone viewer that can be used as a planning tool,” said Chip Fletcher, interim dean of the 东精影业 Mānoa and director of the collaborative.

Historically, land use decisions have been made by legislatures based on various zoning and planning policies combined with recognized environmental hazards, such as one hundred-year floods.

“By using modeling, as opposed to historical data, we鈥檙e in a better position to ensure that efforts to build or rebuild infrastructure and homes are being made with the future in mind,” said Kaʻaina Hull, director of planning for Kauaʻi County. “This bill is a culmination of years of hard work and we are proud to be one of the first counties to lead in implementing progressive building policies related to sea-level rise.”

“The latest IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] reports tell us with high confidence that sea-level rise will persist for 鈥榗enturies to millennia鈥� due to ongoing warming of the oceans and melting of the ice sheets,” said Fletcher. “There is nothing we can do to stop sea-level rise, and in the interest of public health and safety, we need to adapt to its impacts. This measure will minimize the flood threat, promote resilient planning and design, and minimize the expenditure of public money for costly flood control projects necessitated by accelerating sea-level rise. Kauaʻi is providing an example for coastal communities around the nation of the next right step in building community resilience to climate change impacts.”

In addition to the Climate Resilience Collaborative and the Kauaʻi Planning Department, partners include: Hawaiʻi Sea Grant, Department of Land and Natural Resources, the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System, SSFM International and Sea Engineering, Inc.

–By Marcie Grabowski

A provides predictions of coastal flooding in West Maui under various scenarios of sea-level rise and a range of wave events for community members, property owners, businesses, as well as state and county officials. The West Maui Wave-Driven Flooding With Sea Level Rise tool was created by researchers at the (PacIOOS) based at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

The combination of high sea levels and large swells can result in significant coastal erosion, damage to infrastructure and properties, and land-based sedimentation that impairs coastal water quality. Hawaiʻi has experienced an increase in wave plus tide-driven flooding in recent years, and these events are expected to grow in numbers and duration due to sea-level rise and changing wave energies.

“Along with other planning tools, we hope these scenarios that are tailored for West Maui will be useful to inform land use planning,” said Tara Owens, co-investigator on the grant that funded this work and extension specialist with .

The public is invited to learn about this new tool on August 30, 4–5 p.m. to receive log-in information.

Factors impacting West Maui

The water level—and the associated risk of coastal flooding—in West Maui is impacted by several factors that are included in the flooding product: daily tidal cycles, long-term sea-level rise, moderate to large wave events, and the slowly-oscillating ocean sea level height around Maui (caused in part by El Niño). PacIOOS, based at 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补鈥檚 , created the new West Maui Wave-Driven Flooding With Sea Level Rise tool by adopting a next-generation modeling approach to combine these factors and augment the annual high wave flooding model represented in the .

In addition to chronic coastal erosion leading to severe damage of properties, wave overtopping and flooding also pose a major safety concern to infrastructure, in particular to Honoapiʻilani Highway, the major access corridor to West Maui.

“Coastal managers and planners in Hawaiʻi rely on science-based information that can support decision making,” said County of Maui Coastal Planner Jim Buika. “This scenario-based tool is powerful because it is locally specific and easy to use. It can guide us to promote sustainable land use and environmental protection.”

The wave flooding tool and a related in West Maui were developed by PacIOOS through a collaborative effort led by the Coastal Hazards Group in the Department of Oceanography at 东精影业 Mānoa, and funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grant “” (award #NA17NOS4730143).

–By Marcie Grabowski

The (PacIOOS) based at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is helping to enhance disaster and climate resilience in the Republic of Palau. Palau experiences frequent natural hazards, and the impact of climate change and sea-level rise has become a priority issue. Those extreme weather and climatic events often result in disruption of economic activity, and loss of people鈥檚 livelihoods.

A new Waverider buoy was deployed in Palau through an international collaboration. The buoy provides data—; ; and —will enhance disaster and climate resilience in the Republic of Palau. This wave buoy, the only Waverider in Palau, is located on the East side of the island of Babeldaob, about 1.4 miles offshore of Ngaraard State.

This effort is led by the Palau National Weather Service Office (NWSO) through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)鈥檚 Enhancing Disaster and Climate Resilience (EDCR) project, with PacIOOS serving as the technical partner.

“PacIOOS strives to provide timely, reliable, and accurate ocean information to enhance safety and resilience,” said Melissa Iwamoto, PacIOOS director. “As such, we are honored to collaborate with Palau NWSO and all the partners on this effort, and we are dedicated to enhancing the capacity in Palau to maintain these valuable ocean instruments to serve user needs.”

See more stories involving PacIOOS.

PacIOOS will continue to provide technical support as needed in the coming years. The buoy will also provide essential validation points for future development of a high resolution wave model for the island nation.

In addition to being a central user of the data, Palau NWSO will steward the Waverider buoy to ensure its ongoing operations and maintenance. Based on the experience gained from this project, Palau NWSO plans to expand the national wave buoy in the future with Green Climate Fund support managed through the UN Environmental Programme.

“Accurate and reliable wave and current data provide critical information to our weather forecasters, other agency officials, fishers, mariners and many other recreational and commercial ocean users to better understand prevailing ocean conditions and to make safe decisions,” said Maria Ngemaes, Palau NWSO meteorologist-in-charge. “The new wave buoy will help us to validate and/or compare satellite and altimeter derived information on the same variables that the buoy measures. It will also help us to monitor the conditions of the ocean in the event of severe weather and climate variability phenomenon, such as the extremes of ENSO: La Niña and El Niño, the monsoon, tropical cyclones, tropical disturbances and shear lines that dip near and north of Palau, as well as sea level characteristics.”

Supporting local efforts, future advances

Currently, PacIOOS also provides a . This is the first time PacIOOS has been a part of deploying and supporting a wave buoy in Palau.

While in Palau for the wave buoy deployment, PacIOOS wave buoy specialist Andreia Queima gave presentations to local agencies, organizations and communities that are interested to learn more about the buoy, the data it provides and how to access and use the data. She also worked with the Palau NWSO team to implement protocols to maintain the wave buoy.

For data access, visit the and the . For more information, see the .

Vibrio vulnificus, a “flesh-eating” bacterium that lives naturally in the water of the Ala Wai Canal in Waikīkī is likely to increase substantially in coming decades, but infections are rare. In recently , University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa scientists highlight the potential for using oceanographic sensors to make accurate predictions of V. vulnificus. By assessing rainfall, water temperature, dissolved nutrients and organic matter the team can forecast potential spikes in levels of the bacteria.

V. vulnificus has been relatively understudied in tropical ecosystems and further, the implications of climate change for this and other coastal human pathogens are generally unknown.

The research team collaborated with the 东精影业 Strategic Monitoring and Resilience Training in the Ala Wai Watershed () where at least 20 undergraduate students and six graduate students from the 东精影业 Mānoa (SOEST) participated in sample collection from the canal and processing at the .

Consistent with another published , rainfall was found to be critically important for both elevating the pathogen鈥檚 abundance in the canal and transporting V. vulnificus to the adjacent Ala Wai Boat Harbor.

“We also found that measuring the amount of a particular kind of dissolved organic matter in the water significantly improved our model鈥檚 accuracy in predicting V. vulnificus abundance,” said lead author Jessica Bullington, who was pursuing her master鈥檚 degree in the SOEST Department of Oceanography at the time of this work.

Ocean sensors provide necessary data

Water quality monitoring that involves collecting samples and analyzing them in a laboratory is expensive and often limited to select locations. Fortunately, there are oceanographic that continuously monitor water quality at the mouth of the Ala Wai Canal.

“What is really exciting about our research findings is the ability to use real-time and forecast data from the —which includes water temperature, salinity, currents and dissolved organic matter—to predict V. vulnificus abundance in the canal and harbor now and three days into the future,” said Bullington, who is now a doctoral student at Stanford University. “The next steps are to make these predictions accessible and communicate the risk of infection, both for short-term use and adaptation to the impacts of climate change.”

Bacteria to increase with climate change

V. vulnificus abundance was higher when temperatures were warmer, and climate change is predicted to increase water temperature in the Ala Wai Canal.

By combining climate change projections of rainfall and air temperature with their computer model of bacteria dynamics, the team found that average V. vulnificus abundance in the canal may increase twice or three times current levels by the end of the century. Armed with this information, communities can make decisions on how to adapt to the changing conditions.

“Ultimately, we wanted to generate something that would be useful for people,” said Bullington. “This project is a great example of one of the many ways in which our departmental expertise can be of service for our local community and coastal management.”

This effort is an example of 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补鈥檚 goal of (PDF), one of four goals identified in the (PDF), updated in December 2020.

–By Marcie Grabowski