Hawaii Big Island - Sky Critters
Yellow-Billed Cardinal
Curious and surprisingly tame, these birds frequent the yard and have even come up on our porch just outside our open front door (where our huge cat hangs out). Notice they look similar to the Red-crested cardinal, but seem to comb their hair down smooth and do not have the cowlick style hairdo that other cardinals sport. |
Saffron Finch
If you have been to Kona, HI, chances are you've seen these little guys. Clusters of yellow finches are common, similar to the yellow tangs in the water here. These two in our yard tend to hang around with about 6-8 female finches, which are more muted yellowish-gray. Saffron finches and yellow tangs are like bits of sunshine sprinkled all over the island. |
Zebra Dove
This dove is smaller than the mourning dove and the spotted dove. Its call is also very unique. The mourning dove has a longer, sadder coo-coo-coo-coooooo sound, which used to drive me nuts back in Michigan, Texas, and California. Hours of their melancholy crying outside my windows...seemed like they were constantly in mourning. The spotted dove has a much faster, choppy, more chipper call. This, to me, fits an energetic and happy Hawaii lifestyle. |
Kalij Pheasant
These pheasants look like a small black peacock with a chopped off tail. So far I have only seen them at dusk near wooded brush so I haven't gotten a clear photo. Coming soon! |
Francolin
Similar to quail or pheasants, these brown birds have a beautiful singing voice. They tend to come out when I am not ready with my camera, but I will get a photo to post soon! |
Wild Chickens
As I was typing, the roosters reminded me that I was forgetting the most common and loudest birds in our yard! Wild roosters roam around with groups of hens and roost in our mango tree at night. Then they cluck around all day digging up the yard with their claws, eating insects I probably don't want around. The roosters wake up and begin crowing around 2am and don't seem to stop until late evening. Even though we are close to town, the sounds of chickens make me feel like we're living in the country and bring back fond memories of my childhood on my grandparents' farm. Now if I can only find a way to get them to lay eggs in a spot where I can harvest them! In the meantime, I enjoy admiring all the different feather patterns and colors the bright rooster fashionistas wear. |
Wild Turkeys
While we're on the subject of food birds, I must cover wild turkeys as well. I usually see these up near the Aikane Kona Coffee farm where I work. As such, the photo I'm sharing is a cell phone snapshot taken while driving so I apologize for the quality. However, this was a great turkey family with several babies. |