This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 4th, 2008 at 11:27 pm and is filed under Adventure Cruises, Information, Sites, Snorkeling. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Photo Courtesy B. Small/Birds.Cornell.edu
The ancient Hawaiians called this beautiful bird koa`e kea, (kea means white in Hawaiian). The long tail tropicbird is breathtaking to watch in flight as it may plummet down to the ocean to retrieve a fish or squid at any time.
This bird was used for featherwork in ancient times, and the product of the featherwork was used to adorn the ali’i, or chiefs (chieftess) of the villages.
Watching this bird in flight is really amazing and this author has not heard the birds emit any sounds, but researchers say their call is a rasping scream. They are usually seen as solitary travelers, but on Kaua’i there are many that live on the cliffs. They are also seen off the Big Island soaring in Kilauea crater. They lay a single egg in nests built in rock crevasses on cliff faces, which makes studying the mating habits there nearly impossible. Breeding is from March to October.
Snorkeling in Hawaii allows marine life lovers to get out on the water and explore everything the Pacific has to offer, including sea birds. When coming to Maui, please take time to get out there. You won’t know what is awaiting you until you do!
