This cheerful looking emu is a resident of Pana‘ewa Rainforest Zoo & Gardens, near Hilo. What strikes me most though is how this photo is just like looking in a mirror. I mean, the hair, the beak …
Posted in response to this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge ‘Smiles.’
For more information about Pana‘ewa Rainforest Zoo & Gardens, go to hilozoo.org.
The sun sets behind Hualali, as seen from the lower slopes of Mauna Kea.
Posted in response to this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge, ‘Rise/set.’
Sunrise casts soft light on Mauna Kea and the town of Waimea, as seen from Kohala Mountain Road.
Posted in response to this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge, ‘Rise/set.’
A favorite place I try to visit several times a year is Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, north of Hilo. There’s always something different in bloom, something new for me to see, such as this orchid.
As usual with orchids, I offer an identification with some trepidation. I think this is a cambria orchid, though exactly which type, I couldn’t say. Regardless, it’s a most striking and beautiful flower and that’s enough for me.
If anyone knows of a good orchid identification site online, please let me know.
For more information about Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, go to htbg.com.
Posted in response to the WordPress photo challenge, ‘Favorite place’.
One of my favorite places on the Big Island is Mauna Kea. Besides being an imposing volcano, it also has a surreal quality with its mix of smaller volcanic cones and high tech telescopes around the summit.
This view is from Pu’u Kalepeamoa, otherwise known as Sunset Hill. Pu’u Kalepeamoa is lower on the mountain, at about 9,400 feet, a short hike from the visitor center. On this day, those low-hanging clouds ruled out a good sunset, but the light and shadows on the pu’us still made for a worthwhile view.
Posted in response to the WordPress photo challenge, ‘Favorite place’.
Upolu is a favorite spot where I walk most often. The coast below the airport is wild with crashing surf and strong winds. There’s a wealth of ocean life to be seen from turtles to humpback whales, though this year the whale numbers have been down, at least from my observations. There’s also a good variety of birds and other wildlife.
Also on this coast are Mo’okini Heiau and King Kamehameha’s Birthplace and, in a more modern vein, there’s the airport. I’m posting these photos, not because this is the most notable feature of the area, but because I just took them.
Last May, the Marine Corps got some flack for the amount of operations taking place at Upolu, so they stopped using it for the rest of the year. This is the first time I’ve seen the planes back since then, but it has been two days in a row that I know of.
In the top photo, the planes kick up the dirt as they come in to land. Below, they sit on the tarmac, dwarfing the little plane used by a local skydiving operation.
Posted in response to the WordPress photo challenge, ‘Favorite place’.
I haven’t ever been a real birder, but since moving to Hawaii I’ve been more drawn to them. Because of this interest, one of my favorite places to visit on the Big Island is the Palila Forest Discovery Trail. Opened in July, 2016, this one mile loop trail passes through Mauna Kea’s unique, high-elevation dry forest.
The endangered palila (top two photos, eating a mamane seed), which I posted about previously here, is the signature bird to be seen there, but there are many other kinds of birds, both native and introduced, in the area. In addition, the trail has a good variety of other wildlife from bugs to wild pigs. To top it off, the views towards Mauna Loa (below) and Maui are wonderful.
Finally, the drive to the trail goes along Old Saddle Road, which is a fun drive and a place where I often see pueos, the native Hawaiian owl, as well as wild turkeys and other birds and wildlife. All in all, a trip I never tire of making.
The Palila Forest Discovery Trail is featured on the Hawaii Island Coast to Coast Trail, a selection of sites that offer birding opportunities on the Big Island. For more information about Hawaii Island Coast to Coast Trail, go to hawaiibirdingtrails.hawaii.gov/.
For more information about Palila Forest Discovery Trail, go to dlnr.hawaii.gov/restoremaunakea/palila-forest-discovery-trail/.
Posted in response to the WordPress photo challenge, ‘Favorite place’.
I saw this hoverfly on a mamane flower near the top of Pu’u Wa’awa’a, which is one of my favorite places to hike. At first I thought it was a wasp or bee, which is what I’m supposed to think. Mimicking these insects may afford the hoverfly some protection from predators.
Allograpta obliqua is considered a beneficial insect since its larvae feed on aphids.
Many thanks to Daniel at whatsthatbug.com for help with the identification.
Graham's Island 