Category Archives: Parks

The Numbers Game #14

The shadow of Mauna Kea stretches out above the clouds.
A favorite photo of mine. The shadow of Mauna Kea stretching out over the clouds!

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 135. Captions are on the photos.

You can see more responses here.

Sunrise at Upolu on the Big Island of Hawaii
Sunrise at Upolu. I was looking to capture an eclipse, but got this instead.

Slippahs

Slippahs on the beach at Spencer Beach Park, Hawaii

These slippahs, or slippers, were at Spencer Beach Park and had been left on the beach by people out in canoes. But it is customary in Hawaii to remove your footwear when entering someone’s home. This is an import from Asian traditions. Here, most people go barefoot but some, including us, switch to house slippahs, which are only used indoors. I like this because I have no wish to step on a centipede with a bare foot!

Hawaiian Stilts

Three Hawaiian Stilts at Kohanaiki Park in Hawaii

The Hawaiian Stilt or Ae’o is endemic to Hawaii and is a subspecies of the mainland Black-necked Stilt. It’s listed as endangered with a population of around 2,000 birds, a number that has been increasing very slowly over the last few years.

Their plight is due to the usual reasons. They were popular hunting targets until that was banned in the 1940s. But a variety of predators, including cats, dogs, mongooses, and other birds such as Barn Owls and Cattle Egrets, are still a significant threat. So too is loss of habitat, mostly shallow wetlands, to development, agriculture, and pollution.

These three were at Kohanaiki Beach Park, where Hawaiian Stilts can often be seen feeding and nesting. The two on the left seemed to have nodded off and didn’t move while I watched. But the third was fidgety, preening and looking around, then tucking its head away, before repeating the process several times.

Posted for Bird of the Week LVI.

Three Hawaiian Stilts at Kohanaiki Park in HawaiiThree Hawaiian Stilts at Kohanaiki Park in Hawaii

The Numbers Game #12

A green turtle is temporarily stranded on a rock.
A turtle on the rocks. See more photos here.

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 133. Captions are on the photos.

You can see more responses here.

Bougainvillea flowers in bloom
A Bougainvillea in a neighbor’s garden.