Author Archives: Graham

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About Graham

I take photos when I'm out and about, recording life on the Big Island of Hawaii.

What a day for a day octopus

Day Octopus

Day Octopus on the moveThe trick to spotting an octopus is to see it in motion. I’ve seen one or two when they’ve been stationary, but only by accident, watching something else and realizing that there was something slightly odd about that ‘rock’ next to it.

When I do see an octopus, one of the first things I tend to notice is the siphon and the outdated facial recognition software that is my brain thinks, ‘that’s an eye.’ Except it isn’t.

In the top photo, the eyes of this day octopus can be seen at the highest point of the view. The siphon, orange on the outside and white inside, is below and a little to the right. The siphon, also known as the funnel or hyponome, is used for respiration, waste disposal, and discharging ink. It’s also used for locomotion. Water is taken in through the aperture around the siphon and then expelled out of the siphon, propelling the octopus in the opposite direction.

The bottom photo shows the octopus changing its coloration. They can change their color and texture to blend in with their surroundings. The middle photo shows the octopus saying ‘I’ve had enough of this. Arrivederci.’

Day Octopus on a rock

Large orange sulphur butterflies mating

Large Orange Sulphur Butterflies mating

While on a hike south of Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, I saw this pair of large orange sulphur butterflies. They were flying around, joined together, before settling on this seed pod. I assume they were mating, though this discrete view is the only one I had of them.

To see what was going on on the other side would have involved thrashing around in some nasty-looking brush. This would have added to the usual assortment of lacerations that I seem to acquire on a daily basis, and would undoubtedly have caused the butterflies to take to the air again. So I let them be.

Northern pintails

A pair of northern pintails take a dip in a puddle at Upolu Airport. Northern pintails migrate to Hawaii in the winter, in large numbers in former times, but fewer these days.

These are both drakes just starting to molt out of eclipse or juvenile plumage. Alas, they didn’t stick around the area long enough for me to see them in their splendid adult plumage.

Thanks to posters on birdforum.net for the identification and information.

Posted in response to this week’s Sunday Stills challenge on the theme of ‘Tourist.’ See more responses here.

Signs: Green Sand Beach

Near the end of a hike to Papakōlea Beach, better known as Green Sand Beach, there’s this old sign. I think it reads, ‘Welcome to Mahana Bay green sand beach. Please do not take the sand. There is only so much and if everybody that came here takes it, well! soon there will be none. Thank you.’

What I liked was that the only parts that could reasonably be read were, ‘Welcome’ and ‘Thank you.’ The rest I had to decipher with the help of Photoshop when I got home.

Black sand, white pole holders

Fishing pole holders Kona coastKona coast surgeKona coast lava

Between Kailua Kona Airport and Kekaha Kai State Park is a stretch of coastline heavy on lava and aircraft coming in to land, but light on vegetation and people.

There’s a fair smattering of black sand to be found in little coves and one proper black sand beach at Makole’a (below).

In several places, white plastic tubes can be seen wedged or cemented in to the lava (above). They’re fishing pole holders and are a common sight on most of the island’s coastline.

And then there are the usual features of old lava flows by the ocean including blow holes and fractured lava tubes where the ocean surges in and out again (right).

Kona coast black sand beach Makole'a

New calves

New calves and mothers

Three new calvesOn my frequent trips to the coast near Upolu, I pass one of the two dairy farms on the island. As I go by I tend to look out for new calves, which I see quite often. On this day I came across this grouping and stopped to take photos. Actually, there were four new calves in the field, but the fourth was some distance away from this more social cluster.

New calves are quite endearing, especially when they first get up onto their wobbly legs, looking around as if wondering what the heck they’ve got themselves into. I’m also impressed by the mothers. It’s not unusual to see them pushing out their rather large offspring at one end while they continue to graze at the other. What fortitude!

Two new calves

Red pineapple

Ananas bracteatus-red pineapple

Red pineapple (Ananas bracteatus) is an ornamental that originates in South America. It looks like a spiny red plant, but it really has three things going on. The red spiny parts are bracts. Between them are the equally red, but rounded inflorescences. Finally, from the inflorescences emerge small purple flowers.

The long green leaves are also spiny, so it’s no surprise to learn that these plants, which can grow up to four feet tall, are often grown as security hedges.

Most of a white-spotted surgeonfish

White-spotted Surgeonfish

This white-spotted surgeonfish is one that I see regularly when I’m snorkeling. It’s quite distinctive as something has taken a chomp or two out of its back. It’s not unusual to see fish like this, with chunks missing here and there, but if they survive the encounter, they seem to fare as well as the other fish. This one though seems, perhaps understandably, to be more skittish than most.