HPA’s Sea Turtle Research Program recently hosted four middle school students from Okinawa for a day of turtle tagging at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel, in conjunction with the National Marine Fisheries Service. Pictured left to right: Hideshi Teruya, Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium; Momoko Kina, Kitanaka Gusuku; Bo Bleckel, HPA Middle School; Miho Sunagawa, Ohama Junior High School; George Balazs, National Marine Fisheries Service; Yoshiji Kameshima, Fukugen Junior High School; Takashi Ishihara, Sea Turtle Association of Japan; Atsuki Maemitsumori, Ishigaki Daini Junior High School; Maiah Police, HPA Middle School; Marc Rice, HPA Sea Turtle Research Program; Caylin Kojima, HPA Middle School; and Kimi Cantyne, HPA Middle School.

MEDIA RELEASE

Four middle school students from Okinawa recently learned first-hand how students at Hawaii Preparatory Academy are helping a threatened species — the Hawaiian green turtle.

On Aug. 9, HPA’s Sea Turtle Research Program hosted the Okinawan students for a day of turtle tagging at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel, in conjunction with the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The visiting students were winners of an essay contest, “What Can You Do to Help the Environment?” sponsored by the Okinawa Times.

Takashi Ishihara, a researcher with the Sea Turtle Association of Japan, accompanied the group from Okinawa along with a reporter and videographer from the Okinawa Times.

Yoshiji Kameshima, 13, Fukugen Junior High School; Momoka Kina, 13, Kitanaka Gusuku; Atsuki Maemitsumori, 14, Ishigaki Daini Junior High School; and Miho Sunagawa, 12, Ohama Junior High School assisted in tagging turtles and conducting turtle health assessments along with HPA Middle School students Bo Bleckel, Kimi Cantyne, Caylin Kojima, and Maiah Police.

The group was directed by George Balazs, leader, Marine Turtle Research Program, NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, and Marc Rice, director of the Sea Turtle Research Program at HPA.

“It was fun, but challenging because they don’t understand English and we don’t understand Japanese,” Police said. “It was fun teaching them how to hold the turtles. I used hand motions and they learned quickly.”

This was the first trip to Hawaii for the Okinawan students, who spoke through an interpreter.

“I enjoyed working with the turtles because it is something I can’t do back home,” Kameshima said. “This was something special,” Kina added.

The students conducted health assessments on 17 turtles. The Okinawan group later toured Kiholo and visited Hilo and Mauna Kea before traveling to Oahu.