birds are often infected with blood parasites in the wild. these blood parasites are transmitted by dipteran vectors such as mosquitoes. as temperatures increase in high-elevation forests due to climate change, mosquitoes are capable of moving higher to new areas of the forest in the ecosystem. this short film shows our study of blood parasite prevalence in birds in the pre-montane forests of southern costa rica. the project was conducted in collaboration with the organization for tropical studies (ots), the louis stokes alliance for minority participation, and the u.s. national science foundation.

wild ungulates are known to cause a negative impact to the native ecosystem of the island of hawai’i. the foraging behaviour of these ungulates disturb the soil, causing direct mortality of plants and facilitating the spread of invasive weeds in native ecosystems.

this story that highlights the work of derek risch, the project leader for the state-wide ungulate distribution project in collaboration with the department of land and natural resources (dlnr) division of forestry and wildlife and the hawai’i wildlife ecology laboratory with melissa price, ph.d.

this work uses camera traps to focus on how scientists can preserve and foster our vital ecosystems, and specifically how we can better understand the distribution and abundance of these wild ungulates and their impacts in hawai’i native ecosystems to inform decision-making. this project looks for approaches to optimal ungulate management strategies for recreational hunting and conservation purposes across the hawaiian islands.

we were navigating the beagle channel, on our way to omora ethnobotanical park, located 3 km west of puerto williams, the capital of the chilean antarctic province.

as the boat was moving and crossing the cold subantarctic waters, the landscape and glacial peaks made me realize that holding a bird in the hand for a single moment is a powerful reminder of the vulnerability of wildlife and the responsibility of researchers.

birds are commonly infected by blood parasites transmitted by various species of mosquitoes, flies, and midges. in hawai‘i, the introduction of blood parasites in native birds was found to decrease the bird population and cause the extinction of endemic hawaiian honeycreepers.

previous studies in chile have documented blood parasites in several species. juan rivero de aguilar, ph.d., an associate researcher at the cape horn international center for global change studies and biocultural conservation, took me on board on one of his field expeditions to understand and know more about these blood parasite infections in this subantarctic region of the world.

birds in the wild may often appear perfectly healthy; however, blood parasites may be circulating within them without any obvious symptoms. collecting a small blood sample from birds allows researchers to understand the health and the effect that these blood parasites can have on bird populations and the ecosystem.

so i would like to ask: how many hidden threats to wildlife remain invisible to the human eye in a single moment?