Robin W. Baird, the foremost expert on whales and dolphins in waters around the Hawaiian Islands, will be the guest speaker at the annual dinner of Environment Hawaii.
Robin W. Baird, the foremost expert on whales and dolphins in waters around the Hawaiian Islands, will be the guest speaker at the annual dinner of Environment Hawaii.
The dinner is from 6-9 p.m. Aug. 21 at the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center. The cost is $65 per person and includes a $20 donation to Environment Hawaii, a nonprofit organization based in Hilo. To reserve a place, call 934-0115 by Aug. 16.
For nearly two decades, Baird has led a team of researchers in pioneering studies on some of the least-known species of whales and dolphins that swim in the waters around the Hawaiian Islands. His book, “The Lives of Hawaii’s Dolphins and Whales,” will be published this fall by the University of Hawaii Press.
Much of what is now known about some of these secretive species of marine mammals results from the work of Baird and his colleagues. Baird’s work is chiefly responsible for the decision to list the Hawaii resident false killer whales as a federally endangered population segment.
Baird received his Ph.D. from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada. In 1993, he joined the Cascadia Research Collective, based in Olympia, Wash.
Environment Hawaii Inc. is the publisher of the monthly subscriber-supported newsletter Environment Hawaii. Since its founding in 1990, it has won numerous awards at the state, federal and county levels for its investigative reporting. Most of the articles it has published are available for viewing at no charge at its website www.environment-hawaii.org.