Urban Flight amidst Urban Blight

Yay beauty has been restored to our Hawaii skies! And thus I am on the road to run and capture…

“Urban blight” is not as bad in Hawaii as it is in some places. At least we can see many different types of interesting birds (again about birds!) within our neighborhood suburbs. In recent days, I found some old favorites, just in new spots and new actions, and other birds which I have seen frequently and are noted for their color.

Northern Red Cardinal (male) / near Aiea Library / February 2016

My favorite photo-prey, the elusive Northern Red Cardinal! I spied the male very high on a telephone (electrical?) pole. The Red Cardinal is the true Christmas bird, as it is quite frequently “singing loud for all to hear.” [As the fans of the movie Elf know, this is one of the elf rules for “the best way to spread Christmas cheer!” Elf movie quotes]

I know the singing male is searching for a mate. But as I watch the newly reunited (or united) pair around my house, I believe the singing is also for showing off prowess as I still hear the paired male singing loud, perched high on wires or Eucalyptus trees!

Northern Red Cardinal (male) / near Aiea Library / February 2016 

Cattle Egrets / Off Nimitz Highway / February 2016

On another day, I saw Cattle Egrets in a familiar, and quite amusing, urban adaptation. I thought this was quite a telling gathering around a mower. The Egrets are fearless, and shameless, as they gather for the newly exposed treats.

Murmuration of Mynas / near Aiea Library / February 2016

I captured a photo of this “murmuration” of Mynas making a “stop.” Murmuration is actually the group name for starlings, the Family to which the Myna belongs. There was no name for a Myna group but how nice this name sounds! Although a “gaggle” or “unruly” would be more appropriate for this noisy bird. Group names for birds

Saffron Finch pair / near Stadium / February 2016 IMG_2796

I have often seen these bright yellow birds around car-related sites, parking lots and now roads. I think they are Saffron Finches rather than canaries which are also apparently found in Hawaii. Too bad I only had an iPhone as I would like a telephoto shot of these colorful birds. Bird identification

I sighted this pair of Red-crested Cardinals, one day on a tree, and then later in the week in the field, but unfortunately the colors didn’t show up well. Bird identification Too much sun! Seeing these cardinals over a few days led me to lots of questions.

   Red-crested Cardinal pair / near Aiea Library/ February 2016

1)  Why don’t I see Red-crested Cardinals around my house?

2)  Do Red-crested Cardinals prefer open, dry areas? The first time I ever saw them was in lower Halawa Valley and I have seen them in Waikiki.

3)  Do they make the same calls as Northern Red Cardinals? (I thought I heard the familiar Northern Red Cardinal calls before I saw the Red-crested Cardinal pair in a tree.)

4)  In the movie, Rio, was the Red-crested Cardinal in the jungle areas or in the city? Perhaps the fans of the movie Rio could answer this for me!

Keep Watching out for Nature! There are a lot of emerging winter flowers on trees to watch out for!