Birds, Birds and More Birds!

Hawaii has tons of amazing birds and I've been working on taking pictures of them since we got here. My pictures aren't that good and I hope to take better ones eventually, but this will give you an idea of some of the birds who frequent our yard (except the last one, who frequents the dog beach). The coolest bird I've seen so far is an albatross on our hike to Makapu'u Lighthouse. I tried to photograph him but he was too far away, and by the time we hiked closer he had decided to tuck his head into his wing and take an afternoon nap.

Another bird I really like is the Hawaiian Cardinal. It looks somewhat similar to typical cardinals (which also live in Hawaii) but in addition to a bright red head, it has a white breast, gray wings and tail, and a huge mohawk.

The only birds I really don't like are the morning doves. They're so small I actually thought they were babies at first. They are EVERYwhere and apparently have no fear of people, dogs or cars. Since it seems like their favorite place to hang out is in the middle of the road, and there are zillions of them in our neighborhood, I'm sure I'll probably hit one with the Escape eventually. (Although I have to admit, I'm somewhat biased against doves since they were the cause of the Great Bird Mite Infestation in our San Angelo house.) Without further ado, here are a few photos:

Hawaiian Cardinal

Despite searching and searching on the internet, I can't figure out what this guy is. At first I assumed it was a female Hawaiian Cardinal, but I read that male and female Hawaiian Cardinals are both red. Hmm... Anyway, I love his hairdo.

Myna Bird (It's a little hard to see, but he has BRIGHT yellow feet, bill and mask across his eyes.)

Saffron Finch

Java Sparrow (The coloring kind of reminds me of a puffin, my favorite bird. I can't wait to drag Jarrod to Maine someday to see them.)

Hawaiian Stilt (His legs were super pink, but the color kind of got lost since I had to zoom x16 to get a close enough shot without him flying off.)