Category Archives: Birds

The Numbers Game #50

Gullies on the side of Kohala Mountain are illuminated by early morning sun
Early morning light on the Kohala Mountain hillside.

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 171. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Gold Dust Day Gecko on a pink banana.
A switchback on the Kilauea Iki Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
A switchback on the Kilauea Iki Trail.
ripples on a pond
Ripples in the water of ʻAimakapā Fishpond at Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park.
A Common Waxbill feeds on cane grass seeds
A Common Waxbill feeds on cane grass seeds.
Hawaiian Stilts in a pond at Kaloko-Honokahau Park
Hawaiian Stilts.
African Silverbills at a window
African Silverbills at a window. See the full sequence here

High surf at Mahukona

High surf crashes ashore at Mahukona, Hawaii

’Tis the season for big northwest swells to start rolling in here. Happy days for surfers, not so much for snorkelers. The first of the season hit west-facing shores over the past two days. By and large the swells weren’t too bad, but every so often a big swell, such as this one, would crash ashore.

No birds or small children were harmed in the taking of this photo! Posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card. See more responses here.

The Numbers Game #48

The lava cone and lake at Kilauea Volcano in late 2021
Activity at Kilauea Volcano in November of 2021.

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 169. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A grasshopper blocks the way
A bold grasshopper.
A Leafcutter bee on a zinnia violacea flower
A Leaf Cutter Bee.
A juvenile black-crowned night heron catches a fish
A Black-crowned Night Heron catches a fish.
A Red-masked parakeet at Kohanaiki Beach Park.
A Red-masked Parakeet.
Early morning lights at the port of Kawaihae, Hawaii
Lights in Kawaihae Harbor.
Sunset at Hapuna, Hawaii
Sunset at Hapuna.

Getting down with brown

A House Sparrow drinking in Hawaii
A House Sparrow takes a drink.

This month’s Sunday Stills color challenge is ‘Auburn or Brown.’ See more responses here. Captions on the photos.

The aftermath of a flood in Hawaii
The aftermath of floods in Kawaihae earlier this year.
The exterior of a rusty water valve in Hawaii
The exterior of a rusty water valve.
A huge puddle on a dirt road in Hawaii
Drive with care! A dirt road on the Kohala coast after rain.
Arc-eye Hawkfishes on a coral head in Hawaii
Arc-eye Hawkfishes wait in a head of coral.
Goats resting in Hawaii
Goats resting on the 1871 Trail in South Kona.

Not again!

A Great Frigatebird flies along the North Kohala Coat, Hawaii

Yesterday, I was walking along the coast, head down, into a stiff breeze, when a shadow fell over me and then on the ground ahead. I had to laugh. It had been a while since this had happened to me. It was the unmistakable large shadow of a Great Frigatebird. I grabbed my camera out of the bag, and wrestled it into action, knowing as I did so that I wouldn’t get any decent photos.

The bird passed probably 10- or 15-feet overhead. By the time I took this photo it was way ahead, even into the wind. Then it dipped down closer to the water and I didn’t see it again.

Great Frigatebirds are prodigious flying machines and they appear effortless in their flight. Had I seen it earlier, it would likely have changed course earlier. But I suspect it’s not an accident when they pass directly overhead. I think they’re just winding me up!

The Numbers Game #46

A curtained bed at Kohanaiki Beach Club, Hawaii
One of the amenities at Kohanaiki Beach Club.

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 167. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

The front of Chaba's Joy Cafe in Kapaau, Hawaii
Chaba’s Joy Cafe in Kapaau,
A Carolina green anole shedding in Hawaii
A green anole having a little trouble shedding.
A close up of taillight of a Honda Metropolitanscooter
The back end of a Metropolitan scooter.
Skydivers over Upolu, Hawaii
Tandem skydivers earthbound.
A bee scrambles over a clover flower
A bee on clover flowers.
Hawaiian stilts at Kohanaiki Beach Park in Hawaii
A pair of Hawaiian Stilts, the one on the left sitting on a nest.