Tag Archives: Kohanaiki

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

Life’s a beach

The beach at Anaehoomalu Bay on the Big Island, Hawaii
The beach at Anaeho’omalu Bay is very popular. This was taken in the late afternoon when the crowds had thinned out.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer.’ See more responses here. Beach scenes seemed appropriate for this, even if some of these photos were taken in the winter! Captions on the photos.

The beach at Kaloko Honokohau on the Big Island, Hawaii
Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park is also popular, but not many walk the length of it, so there are often empty stretches of sand.
The beach at Hapuna on the Big Island, Hawaii
No wonder Hapuna beach often appears on lists of best beaches.
The beach at Kohanaiki on the Big Island, Hawaii
Kohanaiki is popular with surfers, but the beach is good too, even if it is close to the airport.
The beach at Kawaihae harbor on the Big Island, Hawaii
The beach in Kawaihae Harbor is popular with locals, especially on weekends. It’s a great spot for families with the water protected by a long breakwater.
Spencer Beach Park on the Big Island, Hawaii
Another beach that’s popular with families is at Spencer Beach Park. Smooth sand, calm water, shade trees, and good facilities are the reasons why.

Surfing looks easy

Surfers returning to shore at Pine Trees in Hawaii
Surfers returning to shore at Pine Trees in Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Sports and Hobbies.’ See more responses here.

Hawaii is the home of surfing, a sport that accommodates everyone from the casual weekender to fixtures on the professional circuit. On this day, Pine Trees surf break at Kohanaiki Beach Park was thronged with surfers in the water, but not many catching waves. Those that did tended to be far away from where I was. But I liked watching these two surfers casually glide back to shore on white-topped blue-green water, under a blue sky.

Also posted in response to Becky’s October Squares challenge theme of ‘Past Squares – Blue.’ See more responses here.