Category Archives: Animals

Monk seal with an itch

A monk seal scratches itself in Hawaii

Hawaiian Monk Seals will often crawl up on shore to rest. I’ve been lucky enough to see quite a few over the years. This one is RM36/37, a female born in Kauai in 2020. I first saw her at Upolu just over a year ago, and last saw her there in December of last year. I don’t get down there as often as I used to, so it’s possible she’s been around without me seeing her.

I like to see her because she’s the daughter of BOO, a monk seal I saw several times back in 2016. I asked the response coordinator at the Marine Mammal Center if RM36/37 has a name, and she responded that she doesn’t and that she’s pretty mysterious all together!

The Numbers Game #61

A gecko checks out the scene from the coin return slot of a Pepsi machine.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 182. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

V22 Ospreys landing at Upolu AIrport.
The 1820 Mission building in Honolulu.
Papakōlea Beach, near South Point, is better known as Green Sand Beach.
A Praying Mantis peers down.
A Wild Turkey struts his stuff.
A Dendrobium secundum orchid.

Fresh Off The Grid

A roadside food stand sign near Pololu in Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Fresh.’ See more responses here.

A couple of miles before the end of the Akoni Pule Highway, at Pololu overlook, there’s a roadside food stand called Fresh Off The Grid. There’s no power at that end of the road, hence the ‘off the grid.’

I confess, I’ve never eaten there, in part because I seldom go to Pololu these days. It’s a bit overrun and the parking is terrible, though now they have stewards directing traffic and controlling the comings and goings, which is a big improvement.

Skyflowers in Hawaii
Skyflowers.
A Red Hibiscus flower in Hawaii
Hibiscus.
Shell ginger flowers in Hawaii
Shell GInger.

But the food stand gets good reviews and seems to have a good selection of locally-grown food on the menu. It also has a nice variety of flowers around and a killer view of the ocean, plus mules and horses. What’s not to like.

A sign near Pololu in Hawaii
You have been warned.
A Bee on a bromeliad near Pololu in Hawaii
A bee on a bromekiad.
Mules on the coast near Pololu in Hawaii
A good view of the mules!

The Numbers Game #60

Two Hawaiian monk seals tussle in a tide pool.
A pair of Hawaiian Monk Seals at Upolu. One of my favorite monk seal photos.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 181. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A juvenile Threadfin Jack.
A Gargantuan Blenny rests on a patch of coral
A Gargantuan Blenny.
An adult Black-crowned Night Heron.
A Bristled-thighed curlew on the Big Island coast
A Bristle-thighed Curlew.
A flowery flounder swims off the Big Island of Hawaii.
A Flowery Flounder heading for cover.
The shadow of Mauna Kea stretches out above the clouds.
The shadow of Mauna Kea projected on the cloud cover. Another favorite!