'Tok stori' with Ikuo Tigulu (Conservation Biologist) on the Gizo white-eye

The Gizo white-eye (Zosterops luteirostris) is a bird species in the family Zosteropidae, that is endemic to the small island of Gizo in the Western Province of Solomon Islands. The bird is listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as ENDANGERED. This means that if nothing is done to protect or conserve this species, it may become critically endangered, or even go extinct in our lifetime. The Gizo white-eye is now threatened by industrial logging on the island. Habitat loss is the main threat to the existence of this endemic and endangered bird in the wild.

At Ecological Solutions – Solomon Islands (ESSI), we attempt to help in the conservation and management of biodiversity throughout the Solomon Islands. We have assisted communities conserve areas of high biodiversity value through the Solomon Islands Protected Areas Act (2010) process, and have advised industry on best practices.

Today, our attention draws to our own back yard – Gizo island. In this short conversation we, Ikuo Tigulu (ESSI - Field Biologist), and Patrick Pikacha (ESSI Co-founder and Vertebrate Ecologist), provide a brief discussion on biodiversity in general in Solomon Islands, with a focus on the threats, and solutions to conserving this iconic bird – the Gizo white-eye. The objective of this discussion is to raise awareness of this bird, to support the voices that are calling for better forest management practice, to support the protection of this restricted and endangered bird (Gizo white-eye), and to stimulate urgent action towards its conservation.

(Solomon Islands pidgin)