Circus Forticus: mike and holli go birding

Monday, October 14, 2019

mike and holli go birding

Hawaiian stilts at cross purposes

After our morning at Ka'anapali Beach, the boys were cranked waaaay out of shape. They were marginally better after they got cleaned up and had some lunch, but still really cranky. Then Henry fell asleep on the couch, and Max went to lay down for a nap, so we left Liam in charge and decided to head out to find some birds.

Our first stop was Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge. Much to our disappointment, the main visitor center area was closed because it's Columbus Day (why is that still even a thing? Columbus was terrible!), but the boardwalk on the other side of the road was open, so we went for a walk there to see what we could see. And the answer was: not a whole lot. We saw a sanderling running back and forth in the water, a bunch of Hawaiian coots, and a pair of nutmeg mannikins (ricebirds). It was really hot, so I wasn't terribly surprised by the dearth of good birds, but it was still kind of a bummer.

sanderling

Hawaiian coot

nutmeg mannikins (ricebirds)

But not to worry, we told ourselves, and drove over by the airport to Kanaha Pond Wildlife Sanctuary. This is listed in all our books as a good place to find birds too. But guess what? This was a bust too. And hot. And suuuuper windy. And it smelled really bad. We saw one sharp-tailed sandpiper, and that was that.

sharp-tailed sandpiper

And then I got a bright idea. There's a retention pond next to the pod of food trucks where we ate dinner a few nights ago, and I remembered seeing some birds in there. So we drove over, and Mike parked on the shoulder while I made my way down to see what I could see. Pay dirt! I found Hawaiian stilts hanging out with ibis and Hawaiian coots, cattle egrets, and even an American coot (I think that's what it was). So here's our Maui tip for the day: Don't just go where the book tells you. Maybe you'll find your happy in the retention pond by the food trucks, just like we did today.