Outdoor Ontario
Off Topic => Anything Goes => Topic started by: Bird Brain on April 15, 2011, 02:04:46 PM
-
Hi everyone. I'm heading out tomorrow morning for vacation in Oahu! :D I will be back online late April.
-
Lucky you! Have a wonderful time.
-
Thanks Moira.
I've wanted to visit there since I was a little kid - finally going ... counting the hours! :D
-
Enjoy - there's some good birding there too. Loved the Cattle Egrets all over the place.
-
And plenty of Black-Crowned Night Herons, too. When we stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village last year they were plentiful. Keep your eyes open for the White Terns which never seem to stop flying and were spotted by me every day at the Fort DeRussy Beach Park on Waikiki Beach. Make sure you visit the Dole Plantation where you can also do some birding but their store has very unique Dole branded merchandise that you'll not find anywhere else. Plus they have great treats there, too.
-
Jo-Anne,
Have a good vacation - good birding !
Jim
-
Thanks Kin, Lloyd and Jim. Arrived here late last night (Sat. April 16th) then woken up at 4am by birds chirping and singing! :D
Birds sighted today (Sunday, April 17th):
Common Myna x 50+ ... they are everywhere!
Zebra Dove x 30+, including one displaying courtship behaviour ... super cute little doves.
Spotted Dove x 3 ... can definitely see why they are also known as Lace-necked Dove.
Rock Dove x 40 ... they appear quite large here, very colourful and bright red feet/toes
House Finches x 5
Mallards x 2 (1m, 1f)
White Tern x 1 - flying above Ala Wai Canal (my hotel room faces this canal)
Black-crowned Night Herons x 2
Red-crested Cardinal x 1 ... Wow!
Lots of fish in the canal, including one early this morning that jumped up out of the water then "skipped" three times. :lol: This reminded me of when a person "skips" a stone across water.
I had hoped to see some Sea Turtles swimming around at Waikiki Beach today but had no luck. Will try again another day!
Lloyd ... Dole Plantation is on my list for this week. Thanks for your information. :)
Today's weather: hot, sunny, humid, light breeze, +29c/84f ... this is the forecast for every day this week!
Apparently it snowed in Mississauga today/Sunday? (bwahahaha!) :P (sorry, couldn't resist!)
-
Try to get out to the parks early in the morning, preferably out of the city - that's where we got our Hawaiian Stilts. There might still be Pacific Golden Plovers around.
-
Nice sightings, but can't help being a bit sad as most of the birds on the list are non-native to Hawaii.
Common Myna, Zebra Dove and Spotted Dove from Asia.
House Finch from North America.
Red-crested Cardinal from South America.
Rock Dove and Mallard of course.
-
Have a great time!
good for YOU
Maybe see you at the Lakeshore
in summer :))
Egret :D
-
It is tough to see native birds on Oahu, except for the seabirds, because so many have been introduced. Try some of the somehwat more natural areas such as Waimea Valley - Hawaiian moorhens are easily spotted there.
-John
-
Kin ... I've been sighting Pacific Golden Plover yesterday and today.
For now, a few other sightings:
Red-vented Bulbul - including one tiny baby being fed. Wow!
Japanese White Eye
Common Waxbill - beautiful little birds.
Other sightings:
Butterflies - Gulf Fritillary, Cabbage White and Monarch.
Lizards (?) - Brown Anole and 3 bright green critters with a few red markings.
Thought for sure I had sighted a Hummingbird at Foster Botanical Garden but according to staff there, I most likely actually sighted a Hummingbird Hawk Moth.
Dragonflies - #1 large, bright blue, lime green head. #2 medium size, bright red/orange. Anyone know what these might be? Thanks.
:)
-
What!! no redwinged blackbirds? Hope you don't feel guilty about being away - don't worry, the local RWBBs will just have to find someone else to headpeck! :) Btw, are you staying in Oahu the whole time or will you be visiting other islands? Anyway, have a great time and come home safe (they're waiting for you!).
-
What!! no redwinged blackbirds? Hope you don't feel guilty about being away - don't worry, the local RWBBs will just have to find someone else to headpeck! :)
:lol: Too funny! They have enough of my scalp to keep them going for awhile. ;)
Btw, are you staying in Oahu the whole time or will you be visiting other islands? Anyway, have a great time and come home safe (they're waiting for you!).
Thanks. Yes, staying in Oahu for the whole week - will be visiting the North Shore tomorrow to go to Dole Plantation, Chinaman's Hat and Ko'olau Mountains.
Tonight was exciting - after dinner, went for a walk at Waikiki Beach and sighted Sea Turtles. Yippee!!! :D One was medium size and one was Huge! Another 7 sightings followed but I'm not sure if it was the same 2 turtles or not. Watched a truly spectacular sunset tonight - bright orange/pink in the sky and bright pink on the water. I'm really enjoying seeing the lit torches here at night as well - at the beach and along the main streets in front of restaurants.
-
Glad you are having an awesome time Jo-Anne! :D
-
Rob ... it is awesome here - so many birds, butterflies, dragonflies, etc. Food portions are unbelievable! :lol: Today, I ordered a "side salad" with lunch ... have you ever ordered a family size caesar salad at Pizza Hut in Toronto? That is the size of the "side" salad here! Then they delivered the cheeseburger! :shock:
Earlier this week, went to McDonald's for lunch and you're served a container full of pineapple chunks with your combo! The pineapple here is super juicy and sweet. Yum!
Dr. John ... I sighted one Hawaiian Moorhen yesterday (North Shore) and at least 100+ Cattle Egret - they are walking around in people's front lawns! :D
Yesterday (Wednesday), visited the Dole Plantation and went for a ride on the Pineapple Express. This was fun and interesting. Sighted a Mongoose running along the road alongside the train. Lots of birds, butterflies and dragonflies here! Walked around the gift shop then sat outdoors eating pineapple ice cream. Yum! A male peacock walked up and his face was right by my hand. Walked through the gardens - beautiful, bright flowers.
The North Shore and mountains here are spectacular - so scenic! Stopped off at a macadamia nut store and tried some free samples - Caramel macadamia nuts (ok) and Roasted Salted macadamia nuts - these were good!
Went by areas that various movies have been filmed - eg. Jurassic Park. Wow! If you've ever watched that movie, you'll know exactly what the incredible scenery here looks like!
Today (Thursday), visited the Waikiki Aquarium. Wow - beautiful, colourful fish! Relaxed at Waikiki Beach, drinking a pop and watching the ocean. It's really funny watching people walking around with surfboards! A male "Northern Red Cardinal" came to see if I had any food for him. Sorry guy - no shelled peanuts on me during this vacation. Ha Ha!
Speaking of a surfboard ... went to check out a local firehall this morning and their huge aerial truck has a surfboard attached to the side!
-
Sounds great Jo-Anne, I'm glad you're enjoying it!
Interesting re: Aerial truck..... Grimsby doesn't have those :lol:
Cody
-
Sounds great Jo-Anne, I'm glad you're enjoying it!
Interesting re: Aerial truck..... Grimsby doesn't have those :lol:
Cody
Cody ... check this out, especially the fireman sitting high up at the back . :lol:
The sirens here are really loud!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdPfqQM1FUk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdPfqQM1FUk)
-
Friday morning, downtown Honolulu - Aloha Tower. Sighted various fish including Pufferfish and Triggerfish. On way back to downtown Waikiki Beach, sighted 3 Black-crowned Heron standing by canal at Ala Moana Park. Weather: hot, sunny, humid, breezy, +30c/86f.
-
Well ... after an excellent vacation, now back in cold Canada and going through major jetlag! :shock:
Got home and fell asleep at 8am, exhausted - slept until 6pm, woke up feeling really tired. Had a light dinner then started feeling really exhausted again from 8pm onwards. Going back to sleep soon - hopefully will wake up tomorrow feeling "normal".
-
Ended up falling asleep last night at 10:30pm and waking up at 2:30am feeling good, clear headed, wide awake, craving chips & Coke - yep, back to normal. :)
-
Ended up falling asleep last night at 10:30pm and waking up at 2:30am feeling good, clear headed, wide awake, craving chips & Coke - yep, back to normal. :)
Are you sure you are 100% back to normal....
I see the 2:30am wake up
check
Feeling good, clear headed, wide awake
OK check.
Craving chips and Coke
Check.
But what are we missing????
Where is the CHOCOLATE???????
:lol: :lol:
Are you sure you're really back to normal yet?
I'm glad you enjoyed your trip Jo-Anne.
Sounds like you had an amazing tiem, not to mention took total advantage of the free wi-fi :wink:
Glad to have you back home.
Let's hope the beautiful Hawaiian has followed you back.
-
Hi Jo-Anne,
Things won't really be normal until the RWBB's find out you're back! They've been chomping at the bit (which can be tough on beaks!) so get out there...just kidding - welcome back! :)
-
Are you sure you are 100% back to normal....
I see the 2:30am wake up
check
Feeling good, clear headed, wide awake
OK check.
Craving chips and Coke
Check.
But what are we missing????
Where is the CHOCOLATE???????
:lol: :lol:
:lol: Later in the morning, I had a couple of Fudgee-O cookies. :D After lunch, had some vanilla ice cream with lots of Chocolate sauce. Perhaps some Chocolate pudding after dinner? Ha Ha.
Are you sure you're really back to normal yet?
Meg ... I will never be 100% "normal" ever, thank goodness! :D
I'm glad you enjoyed your trip Jo-Anne.
Sounds like you had an amazing tiem, not to mention took total advantage of the free wi-fi :wink:
Glad to have you back home.
Let's hope the beautiful Hawaiian has followed you back.
Thanks for the welcome back. This morning, watched a beautiful sunrise with bright pink/orange/yellow then a Great Blue Heron flew past the livingroom window at 6:55am, heading North. He (or she) was so close, I was looking into the eye then watching the long legs go by!
My mistake this morning was taking a look at The Weather Network to see this week's forecast. Blah! :shock:
-
Hi Jo-Anne,
Things won't really be normal until the RWBB's find out you're back! They've been chomping at the bit (which can be tough on beaks!) so get out there...
:lol: Time to invest in a helmet and/or large bag of shelled peanuts! ;)
- welcome back! :)
Thank You for the welcome back! :D