Category Archives: In The Water

I think I can make it

Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park seen from the water

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Celebrations.’ See more responses here. Since I rarely take photos of people, the usual options for this one were off the table. So I’ve gone with some photos from Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park.

This site is also known as Place of Refuge and it represented guaranteed forgiveness for those who had broken kapu. The park’s website (here) notes, “Kapu (sacred law) regulated fishing, planting, and the harvesting of other resources. Any breaking of kapu disturbed the stability of society, and the punishment was often death. Any fugitive who had broken kapu could seek refuge and forgiveness within the walls of the Puʻuhonua.” The refuge is bordered by a huge L-shaped wall on land and by the ocean on the other sides.

Hale o Keawe at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park.

I imagine some such unfortunate swimming across Honaunau Bay. The palm trees look welcoming, but this is a sacred place, home to Hawaiian royalty, and to important ceremonial sites. One of these is Hale o Keawe, situated at the northern end of the wall, a place of powerful mana, or divine power. It is home to many ki’i, representations of “the akua, or the multitude of Hawaiian gods, deities, and venerated ancestors.” The refuge is on the other side of the Hale.

Ki'i at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park in Hawaii
Ki'i at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park in Hawaii

These ki’i would look down on the miscreant swimming toward them, growing in size as they got closer. But so too would the welcoming palm trees and though it is a rocky shore, a few cuts and scrapes would be a small price to pay for salvation.

Palm trees at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park in Hawaii

Once ashore, forgiveness was guaranteed and the person was free to reenter society and rejoin family and friends, who would no doubt celebrate the return.

It’s not all about looks

A Reticulated Butterflyfish and Thompsons Surgeonfish in the waters off Hawaii

Reticulated Butterflyfishes are among the easiest fish to identify with their array of white spots on black, and other notable markings.

The same cannot be said for Brown Surgeonfishes. Mostly brown, with a tinge of lavender and some dull spots on the face, this is a fish that’s often overlooked. But according to my fish book, it boasts a couple of noteworthy accolades.

The first is that, back in 1993, “the biggest species of bacteria known to science had been discovered in the gut of this surgeonfish.” It notes that the bacteria was about the size of a hyphen in a newspaper article, which is a pretty good size actually.

The other distinction is that a study, by Roland and Marie-Louise Bauchot, of the brains of Hawaiian reef fishes, declared that the smartest fish on the reef is none other than the little Brown Surgeonfish.

Peppered Moray Eel

A Peppered Moray Eel swims in the waters off Hawaii
A Peppered Moray Eel swims in the waters off Hawaii

Peppered Moray Eels live in shallow waters, including tide pools and ponds. My fish book describes them as bold and active, and notes that they will even launch themselves out of the water, onto the rocks, trying to catch crabs, their primary prey.

So it’s somewhat surprising that, while I have probably seen glimpses of this eel, these are the first photos I’ve taken of one. This one was swimming along and, obligingly, continued to do so for a while, without disappearing into a crack or hole.

A Peppered Moray Eel swims in the waters off Hawaii

Hello, yellow

A full moon rises over Hawaii
A buttery yellow full moon rises over North Kohala.

This month’s Sunday Stills Color Challenge theme is ‘Yellow.’ See more responses here. Once again, I’ve gone for a melange of photos, which sounds edible, but probably isn’t. Captions on the photos.

A rider representing Oahu at the King Kamehameha day parade in Kapaau, Hawaii
Yellow is the official color for Oahu and the island’s Pa’u rider …
A rider representing Oahu at the King Kamehameha day parade in Kapaau, Hawaii
… at this year’s Kamehameha Day parade carried a bounty of it.
A Bee on a wedelia flower in Hawaii
A bee forages on a wedelia flower
A yellow hibiscus in Hawaii
A vibrant yellow hibiscus flower.
Yellow tangs feeding in the waters off Hawaii
The quintessential yellow fish here – Yellow Tangs.
A Saffron Finch in Hawaii
A yellow Saffron Finch on a shrub by the very yellow Hawi Post Office.
A wasp heads for water in Hawaii
Finally a photo from a couple of days ago. A boldly-marked wasp zooms in to collect water.

Here comes trouble

Two Black-crowned Night Herons hunting in a pond in Hawaii

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

A pair of juvenile Black-crowned Night Herons spell trouble for small fish living in the pool behind Pelekane Beach in Kawaihae.

A pair of giant porcupinefish in the waters off Hawaii

Giant Porcupinefish can inflate themselves into a ball. When they do so, long spines along the back become raised and stick out, making them an extremely unpleasant proposition for any predator. Oh, and they’re poisonous, too. Trouble, indeed.

two spotted eagle rays hunting in the waters off Hawaii
A pair of wild pigs snack on mangoes
A pair of cattle egrets and a cow in Hawaii

Spotted Eagle Rays hunt for molluscs and other creatures hiding in the sand. They root out prey with their duck-like bills.

Wild pigs can dig up a garden in no time, searching for worms and the like, but they go bananas over fallen fruit. These two were slurping down fallen mangoes.

This cow looked very suspicious of these cattle egrets, especially the one on its back. But they weren’t up to any trouble, just waiting for the cow to start grazing again and stir up some insects for them.

Two Gold Dust Day Geckos in a territorial dispute in Hawaii

The Gold Dust Day Gecko on the left isn’t licking the paint. He’s sticking out his tongue and leaning to make his body look bigger in a challenge to the other gecko. The other one was singularly unimpressed and chased off his adversary.