Maya

Maya Elaine Higa^[1] (born: May 24, 1998 (1998-05-24) [age 26])^[1] is an American YouTuber, Conservationist and Twitch streamer. She is the founder of Alveus Sanctuary, a non-profit exotic animal sanctuary and virtual education center based in Austin, Texas.

History

Early life

Maya grew up on a farm in Northern California,^[2] along with her two brothers and sister.^[3] She attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, graduating with a bachelor's degree in agricultural education and communication.^[4][5]

Rise to fame

One day in February 2019, Higa decided to go on "Omegle", a site where you would talk to random strangers, where she met two guys. After a bit of talking they convinced her to start streaming on Twitch, which she proceeded to do. Her early streams mainly consisted of singing and chatting to her audience, until one day she brought her juvenile red-tailed hawk on camera. The clip was later posted to the subreddit r/LiveStreamFails, where it quickly went viral. She proceeded to get more attention due to how different her content was in comparison to other streamers at the time, as there weren't any Falconers or Wildlife Rehabilitators on the site previously. Realizing that she could educate the Twitch audience about wildlife, she decided to make streaming her part-time job. She then gained media attention after she celebrated her 21st birthday by holding a charity stream for a local homeless coalition she previously volunteered at. The stream raised US$32,000.^[6][7]

After moving from California to Texas in 2020, she created "Alveus Sanctuary" in February 2021, a non-profit exotic animal sanctuary and virtual education center. On February 10, 2021, she held a 21-hour charity stream for Alveus. The stream was highlighted by an auction that sold off items such as a golden shovel owned by Twitch Streamer Sodapoppin, Gucci loafers owned by Rapper T-Pain, and a signed jersey from xQc. The most expensive item auctioned off was a 1-hour gaming session with streamer and former professional CS:GO player Shroud, purchased by fellow streamer Ludwig for $53,000. Shortly after reaching her goal of US$500,000, Maya shaved her head, fulfilling a promise she made a few weeks prior. All together, she raised US$578,000.^[8] During Twitch Con 2024, Twitch donated $100,000 to Alveus Sanctuary during their opening ceremony causing Maya to break down in tears out of happiness and shock.^[9]

Relationships

Maya met Mizkif, another streamer, in April 2019. At first, they only talked on Discord on their respective streams before having a couple of online "dates." Mizkif invited Maya to fly out a few months after and meet in real life which was possible after a fan donated Mizkif a huge amount of money. They got into a relationship around Summer 2019^[10], unfortunately, the couple split in September 2021.^[11]

Maya started dating Caleb, a non-streamer, around July 2022. She has said many good things about him^[12][13][14] stating he is the nicest boyfriend she has ever had and that he treats her like "the most special the most deserving, best person ever."^[15]

Podcasts

In July 2019, Higa started the "Conservation Cast", a Podcast where viewers learn about animals and gather information from experts such as Conservationists, Wildlife Enthusiasts and Scientific Communicators. The Podcast is discontinued as of 2021.^[16]

Maya hosts a Podcast called "Wine About It" with best friend and fellow Twitch streamer QTCinderella where they talk about taboo subjects and tell personal stories.^[17] A new episode is released every Wednesday along with a bonus episode on their Patreon. ^[18]

In May 2024, Maya announced a new podcast called "Worlds Wildest" along with her co-host and co-worker Connor O'Brien.^[19] Worlds Wildest is a Podcast based around "The Tales of Earth's Most Extreme Creatures." A Patreon for this Podcast was announced as well.^[20]

Trivia

• Higa owns a non-profit animal sanctuary called "Alveus Sanctuary."
• She co-hosted "The Streamer Awards" in March 2022 with QTCinderella.^[21]
• She has a strong passion for arts and crafts^[22]
• She is currently dating her non-streamer boyfriend of two years, Caleb.^[23]
• She has a podcast called "Wine About It" with QTCinderella where they talk about taboo topics.^[17]
• She has been claimed as "The Steve Irwin of Twitch."
• In August 2023, Higa dyed her hair red.^[24]
• In December 2023, Higa revealed she was working on a children's book based around Bugs.^[25]
• She attempted to learn to kickflip in January 2024 but ultimately gave up after around 17 hours of trying.^[26] Ricky Glaser, a professional skateboarder, attempted to help her learn.^[27] Fellow Streamer Ludwig even attempted to do it but failed as well after only 1 stream.^[28]
• At the Streamer Awards on February 17, 2024, she was featured in an "Ostonox" edited video titled "Every Streamer Starts Somewhere" (Timestamp: 46:00) where they showcased one of her first Twitch Streams as an ode to how far her and other creators have come within the past decade.
• Higa was also featured in the special credits at the end of the Award Show, along with Caleb, to thank the both of them for helping out QTCinderella with the event.^[29]
• Maya revealed in April 2024 that she dealt with a stalker for around 3 years leading to her having to take multiple safety precautions and ultimately fearing for her life. She stated that the stalker is no longer a problem within her life and she can finally get back to doing more energetic and adventurous streams as well as sleep in her own home once again^[30][31][32]
• She hit 1,000,000 subscribers on her main Youtube channel on January 22, 2025.
• During Twitch Con 2024, Twitch graciously donated $100,000 to Maya's non-profit, Alveus Sanctuary, during their opening ceremony.^[9]

Gallery

References