Sophie Shelbourne

From a young age, Sophie has been drawn to conserving wildlife. She earned her B.Sc. in Biology at Royal Holloway University of London, where she conducted a research project on the conservation of the Red Kite (Milvus milvus). After moving to Maui in 2022, Sophie worked as a Naturalist with the Pacific Whale Foundation, where she developed her passion for educating others about conservation and Hawaiian wildlife. She also gained international field experience through a Wildlife Conservation Internship with GVI in South Africa, contributing to avian diversity research at Karongwe Private Game Reserve.

Sophie joined the Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project in 2024. Her work focuses on mosquito control to help protect Hawaiʻi’s forest birds from avian malaria and she is passionate about supporting conservation efforts that give Maui's endangered species a chance to survive and recover.