{"id":342770,"date":"2025-12-11T09:33:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T09:33:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/342770\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T09:33:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T09:33:10","slug":"nene-that-lost-mate-has-found-new-partner-and-is-once-again-nesting-in-hilo-park-big-island-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/342770\/","title":{"rendered":"N\u0113n\u0113 that lost mate has found new partner and is once again nesting in Hilo park : Big Island Now"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\"\"<\/a>Signs posted after n\u0113n\u0113 seen nesting in Lili\u2018uokalani Parks in Hilo in December 2025. (Photo courtesy: DLNR)<\/p>\n

A n\u0113n\u0113 that lost her mate in 2024 after it was hit by a car has found a new partner and nesting in Hilo\u2019s Lili\u2018uokalani Gardens.<\/p>\n

Staff from the Department of Land and Natural Resources\u2019 Division of Forestry and Wildlife and the County of Hawai\u02bbi Department of Parks and Recreation have posted signs marking the area and will be monitoring the female, known by her banding code NTC, and her partner throughout the nesting season, which can run from October to March and sometimes later.<\/p>\n

After years of tragic n\u0113n\u0113 deaths in Hilo, officials hope that new county regulations that prohibit the feeding of feral animals<\/a> on county property and increased observation will lead to nesting success at the busy park.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>A male n\u0113n\u0113, tagged 595, eats cat food at Lili\u02bbuokalani Park and Gardens in Hilo. (Photo courtesy of Jordan Lerma\/N\u0113n\u0113 Research and Conservation)<\/p>\n

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This new rule takes effect in January 2026. The hope is it will reduce significant disease, predation and associated impacts from invasive species, according to a press release from the Department of Land and Natural Resources.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy protecting the n\u0113n\u0113 nests in Hilo, we not only allow n\u0113n\u0113 to reestablish their habitat, but also allow people to connect with a vulnerable Hawaiian species,\u201d said Raymond McGuire, a biologist with the Division of Forestry and Wildlife on Hawai\u02bbi Island. \u201cIt is an incredible gift to have n\u0113n\u0113 in our neighborhood, but with this great gift comes an even greater responsibility to protect these birds by not interacting with them and by only observing them from afar.\u201d<\/p>\n

NTC has faced several tragedies over the past few years. In 2023, her gosling that was abducted from Wailoa State Park was luckily returned to her. She had another gosling that died from toxoplasmosis<\/a> in 2024. She was also the mate of the n\u0113n\u0113 that was struck and killed by a car in 2024<\/a> while crossing the street to reach a cat feeding station.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>A n\u0113n\u0113 pair, tagged NTC and 595, stand together as their gosling eats at Lili\u02bbuokalani Park and Gardens earlier this year. The gosling was killed by toxoplasmosis in April, according to DLNR. (Photo courtesy of Jordan Lerma\/N\u0113n\u0113 Research and Conservation) <\/p>\n

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NTC was already heavy with eggs at the time of her mate\u2019s death in 2024, and none of the goslings survived. This year, NTC has found a new mate and is nesting in a less busy section of the park, which should be easier to protect.<\/p>\n

The greatest chance for success during NTC\u2019s new nesting season will depend on the behavior of park goers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Parks Department continues to support conservation efforts to protect n\u0113n\u0113 that live and nest in our parks,\u201d said Clayton Honma, director of Parks and Recreation. \u201cWe ask everyone to please follow park rules, such as those related to keeping dogs on leash and to refrain from feeding feral animals. These actions will help safeguard native birds and create healthier, more enjoyable public spaces for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Citizen science has also captured the story of NTC. Jordan Lerma, director of N\u0113n\u0113 Research and Conservation, reports his organization has one of the most extensive sighting histories in its catalog, thanks to years of community observations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the recovery of n\u0113n\u0113 continues, it\u2019s becoming increasingly common to see these birds in parks and other public spaces,\u201d said Lerma. \u201cTogether, we are learning how to balance the protection of native wildlife with shared use of these places. We are grateful to everyone who has helped us keep track of these birds by submitting photos and sightings on nene.org<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Signs posted after n\u0113n\u0113 seen nesting in Lili\u2018uokalani Parks in Hilo in December 2025. (Photo courtesy: DLNR) A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":342771,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[76281,77699,5379,171780,122627,171781,3714,79,201],"class_list":["post-342770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-dlnr","tag-dofaw","tag-hawaii-county","tag-liliuokalani-gardens","tag-nene","tag-ntc","tag-parks-and-recreation","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342770","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342770"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342770\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/342771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}