E Lele! ("Go Fly!") Hawaiian Seabird Card Game

What is E Lele!?

E Lele! (pronounced eh leh-leh, meaning “Go Fly!” in Hawaiian) is a card game about Hawaiian seabirds, developed in collaboration with Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project (MNSRP). 

Built on Go Fish play style, players establish thriving seabird colonies, matching bird pairs to their native nesting habitats, while navigating real-world threats like mongoose, light pollution and plastic. Conservation cards — like traps, dark skies programs, beach cleanup — let you protect your colonies. 

Quick to learn, fast paced, highly interactive, portable and educational!

Game creators Scott Crawford and Heidi Lea, along with Jay Penniman from Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project, were on The Conversation on Hawai‘i Public Radio on July 23 sharing about the genesis of the game, its scientific accuracy, and the importance of education and community awareness and participation in seabird conservation. 

The Cards

There are four card types in E Lele!, plus key reference cards:

🔑 Key Cards

3 quick-reference cards showing habitat icons, threat icons, card relationships, and Hawaiian language phrases to play — so the game stays accessible without stopping to look up the rules.

The ecological relationships are real. The threats are real. The protections are real. The science has been reviewed throughout development by the Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project. 

Who is E Lele! for?

•     Families looking for a meaningful game that’s easy to learn and genuinely fun

•     Party Hosts looking for a game that’s highly interactive and generates a lot of laughter

•     Educators teaching ecosystems, conservation, or Hawaiian language and culture.

•     Birders and nature lovers who want something on the table that reflects their values

•     Hawaiʻi lovers everywhere — visitors, kamaʻāina, and the diaspora

•     ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi learners — immersion schools, Hawaiian language programs, families

•     Tabletop gamers who appreciate tight mechanics and games with purpose

It started with a bird rescue.

In 2018, we helped rescue an injured juvenile koaʻe kea — a white-tailed tropicbird — near our home in Hāna, Maui. We had no idea what to do. A search online led us to the Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project, and one phone call started a connection that has grown ever since.

Through our relationship with MNSRP, we learned that Hawaiʻi’s seabirds are extraordinary — ancient navigators that have crossed the Pacific for millions of years, returning to nest in the islands, and bringing with them rich nutrients to nourish the land and the reefs. We learned about the threats they face like mongoose, cats and light pollution. And we learned that small acts of care genuinely matter.

That rescue became a friendship, a collaboration, and eventually... a card game.

Hatched on a camping trip. Refined by scientists.

On an overnight camping trip in the spring of 2022, we came up with the core idea: a Go Fish-style game where bird pairs need matching habitats to score, with threats and protections as a “hazard and remedy” layer — inspired by the classic French card game Mille Bornes (that Scott played as a kid). 

We wanted something that was quick to learn (even kids already know the basic rules of Go Fish), fun and dynamic to play, could be played in about an hour, was portable, and that would teach about birds in the process. 

Scott sketched the first rules on a notepad. Heidi came up with the name. E Lele! — Go Fly — just felt right.

Scott contacted Jay Penniman at MNSRP and shared the concept. Jay said “Sounds like a great idea,” and sent detailed seabird spreadsheets. From there, Scott built the rules around actual ecological relationships. Heidi designed the cards.

In 2023, we debuted a prototype at a workshop at the Hawaiʻi Conservation Conference — and the response told us we were onto something.

The fully designed prototype deck was printed in September 2024. After more playtesting and refinement, now we’re ready to bring E Lele! to the world.

Here's the photos of the full prototype deck. Note that the bird cards will have blue headers instead of yellow, some cards won't look exactly like they appear here, and a couple of the threat and protection cards will be different based on the play testing. 

Developed in collaboration with Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project

MNSPR provided the spreadsheets about the birds, habitats, conservation status and threats that were used to develop the game mechanics around real ecological relationships. Their scientists reviewed and gave feedback on the game during its development to ensure it was as accurate as possible (while also understanding that some simplifications have to be made for a playable game). And their crew helped to play-test the game. 

Here's what MNSRP has to say about the game:

“E Lele! (Go Fly) is an educational card game focused on seabirds that is similar to Go Fish. Players learn about nesting habitats, threats, and how people can help protect seabirds. The game also introduces Hawaiian language, all in a fun and engaging series of moves. Players of all ages can enjoy this game, including young children, and it’s a great option for parties and classrooms. Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project encourages everyone to pick up a deck of cards and start playing, learning, and laughing together as you learn about the incredible lives of the seabirds of Hawaiʻi and the beautiful Hawaiian language.”  — Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project, December 2024

We encourage our supporters to visit Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project and make a donation to support their important seabird conservation work! 

Why seabirds?

Seabirds are among the most ecologically significant birds on Earth. Many species spend months at sea — some flying millions of miles over a lifetime — before returning to the same island, the same hillside, sometimes the very same burrow where they were hatched. When they come ashore to nest, they bring with them nutrients from the open ocean: nitrogen and phosphorus from fish and squid they've eaten, deposited onto the land through their guano. These nutrients feed native plants, enrich the soil, and flow into nearshore reefs — creating a biological connection between the deep ocean and the islands that has shaped Hawaiʻi’s ecosystems for millions of years.

Today, many of Hawaiʻi’s seabirds are in serious decline. Introduced predators — mongoose, rats, cats, and feral dogs — prey on eggs, chicks, and nesting adults. Light pollution from coastal development disorients fledglings taking their first nighttime flights, causing thousands to crash-land far from the ocean each year. Habitat loss has eliminated nesting colonies that once stretched across entire coastlines. Sea level rise is threatening their nesting sites in Papahānaumokuākea (NW Hawaiian Islands). Several species, including the ʻUaʻu (Hawaiian petrel) and ʻAkēʻakē (Band-rumped Storm Petrel), are now endangered or threatened.

The good news is that seabird conservation works. Predator control programs, dark skies policies, and protected nesting areas have helped stabilize and even grow some colonies. Techniques like social attraction and translocation have helped to establish new colonies. Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project and similar organizations work year-round to rescue injured birds, install and maintain predator proof fencing, monitor nesting sites and do bird banding, and educate communities about how to help. Every action — turning off lights during fledgling season, supporting predator removal, keeping cats indoors — genuinely makes a difference. E Lele! was born from that belief: that understanding these birds, and caring about them, is the first step toward protecting them. And that games can be a powerful learning tool!

Why Hawaiian language?

‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i is one of the most actively revived languages on Earth, and both of us are committed learners who want to contribute to that revival. 

We want to encourage the common use of the Hawaiian names for the birds, including honoring the names developed through the Papahānaumokuākea Native Hawaiian Cultural Working Group (CWG), Nomenclature Subcommittee, for four species of seabird included in the deck (‘Akihike‘ehi‘ale, ‘Ao‘u, Hinaokū/Manuohina, and Nunulu).

Every card displays the Hawaiian name — ʻIwa for the Great Frigatebird, Moku Liʻiliʻi for the Islet, Manakuke for the Mongoose, Pahele Iki for the Small Trap. Players absorb the language naturally through play. Basic Hawaiian language phrases to play the game are provided on a reference card and on the website.

The game is a learning tool for Hawaiian immersion students, for families reconnecting with ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, for visitors wanting to learn some Hawaiian names, and for anyone who loves the islands.

Mahalo to Sam ‘Ohu Gon III, J. Hau‘oli Lorenzo-Elarco and Kea Gulino for reviewing the ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i usage. 

Why Kickstarter? Why now?

We’ve spent four years developing, designing, playtesting, and refining E Lele! The game is done. The prototype deck is in our hands. We're ready to fledge and take flight!

Now we need the funding for our first print run of 1,000 decks at Shuffled Ink Card Games — enough to reach the retailers, educators, and conservation partners we’ve been building relationships with across Hawaiʻi and beyond.

We’re not a game company. We’re Scott and Heidi, two people from Hāna who rescued a bird and got inspired. Kickstarter is how we get this out into the world.

About Scott & Heidi

We live in Hāna, on the eastern end of Maui — one of the most remote and ecologically and culturally rich corners of Hawaiʻi. In addition to creating E Lele!, we’re working with MNSRP on a community seabird predator fencing project in partnership with a local organization in Hāna. We love to take hikes along the coastlines of East Maui and watch the seabirds. Scott works for a nonprofit in the field of marine conservation, and Heidi works as the Executive Director of the Hāna Business Council.

Scott developed the game mechanics and rules, grounding them in the actual ecology of Hawaiian seabirds. Heidi designed the cards. Together we’ve playtested E Lele! with families, educators, conservationists, and game lovers across Hawaiʻi.