Waterfowl through Shorebirds

All of this summer’s goose sightings pertained to continuing birds—some of whom have been resident in the islands for multiple years. Both Snow Geese were regularly observed at their respective haunts: Princeville Makai Golf Course on Kauaʻi (Alex Eisengart, Adrian Burke, Mark Hoffman, Brabble Hoffman, Lucas Stephenson, Mark Stephenson) and Waiākea Pond on Hawaiʻi Island (Richard May, Andrew Griebeler, Tammi Ventura, Sherman Wing, Peter Rigsbee, Yasemin Can). On the Kona side, the Cackling Goose present at Kealakehe WTP since at least Feb 2011 continued there through the summer (m. ob.).

An out-of-season Lesser Scaup was spotted on Hawaiʻi Island, at Wailoa River SP’s Waiākea Pond, on 12 Jul (Sherman Wing, Peter Rigsbee). While this species is a common winter visitor to the archipelago, there are only a handful of substantiated summer records (Pyle & Pyle 2017). Interestingly, as with this summer’s bird, many of these occurrences pertained to Hilo: Lesser Scaup was also reported at Waiākea Pond during the summers of 1980, 2022, and 2023 (eBird, Pyle & Pyle 2017). Waiākea Pond has also long served as a reliable spot to find Pied-billed Grebe; an individual has resided there since 2015 and was reported again this summer on 16 Jun (Richard May). The leeward side of Hawaiʻi Island also had a Pied-billed Grebe sighting at Hōkūlia Shoreline Park on 11 Jun (John Lynch).

The Hawaiian Islands are home to a small population of Mariana Swiftlets. Native to their namesake Mariana Islands, the swiftlets were translocated from Guam to Oʻahu in 1962 and 1965 by the Hui Manu Society (Wiles and Woodside 1999). In its native range, the species is endangered and has been extirpated from multiple islands. The Oʻahu population appears tied to a single suitable nesting cave which, in conjunction with ongoing depredation by rats, seems to limit population growth and expansion of this cryptic species (Johnson et al. 2017). Three Mariana Swiftlets were observed from Oʻahu’s ʻAiea Ridge Trail on 11 Jun (Michael Young).

Semipalmated Plover was found on Kauaʻi’s west side on 16 Jun (Adrian Burke, Tyler Connell, Keane Sammon). The bird was observed on several more occasions at various places on the Mānā Plains—including Kawaiʻele and Kinikini Ditch—until 6 Jul (Jim Denny, Richard May, Lance Tanino, Nathaniel Watkins, Kandace Glanville, Ben Stalheim). Though typically occurring as a winter visitor to the Hawaiian Islands, summer appearances of Semipalmated Plover have nonetheless been documented at some point on many of the Main Hawaiian Islands (eBird, Pyle & Pyle 2017).

Gray-tailed Tattler was first reported on the north shore of Oʻahu, at MCBH, on 1 Jun (Richard May, Peter Donaldson). Despite several intervening attempts to find it, the bird eluded further detection until 9 Jun, when it was finally relocated (Kellen Apuna, Michael Young). It was subsequently reported on 18 Jun (Richard May) and 19 Jun (Lance Tanino, Kellen Apuna). Gray-tailed Tattler is an infrequent visitor to the Main Hawaiian Islands at any time of year, but summer records are almost unheard of; indeed, this individual appeared to be the first (eBird, Pyle & Pyle 2017). All three previous summer occurrences were in the Northwesterns: Gray-tailed Tattler was reported on Kure Atoll in Jul 1997 (Eric VanderWerf) and on Midway Atoll in Jun 2020 and Jul 2022 (Jonathan Plissner).

Jaegers and Gulls

A westbound Pomarine Jaeger was reported during a 17 Jun evening seawatch from Port Allen, Kauaʻi (Adrian Burke). Sightings of this species in Hawaiian waters during the summer months are exceedingly rare; both prior summer records were from Kona, Hawaiʻi Island in Jun 2016 (Lance Tanino) and Jun 2017 (Todd McGrath). Gulls do not breed in the Hawaiian Islands and instead are primarily observed as off-season visitors. However, this spring’s impressive gull diversity bled into another rather larid-rich season: three species of gulls were observed in the islands this summer. Bonaparte’s Gull was reported twice—on 16 and 24 Jun—at Maui’s Kaʻanapali Golf Course (Thomas Cooper), the same location where Bonaparte’s had been sporadically seen since 15 Dec 2023 (Heather Buttonow). This bird was the first Bonaparte’s Gull ever confirmed in the Hawaii Region in summer (eBird; Pyle & Pyle 2017).

A number of Laughing Gulls over-summered in the Hawaiian Islands. On Hawaiʻi Island, one bird was observed at Kealakehe WTP on 2 Jun (Reginald David) and 2 Jul (Dina Geotas) and at the Mauna Lani Resort on 1 Jun (Merry Miller) and 9 Jun (Peter Rigsbee). On Maui, up to two Laughing Gulls were observed at Kanahā Pond between 3 Jun and 30 Jul (Nathaniel Watkins, Rebecca Bicker, James Cooper, Lance Tanino, Bradley Jacoby, Laura Celik, Fuat Celik, Wendy Swee, Scott Rohr, Beth Pearson, Sanjal Desai, John Tsortos, Alex Young, Jiahua Xing, Wanda Yang). At the Marine Corps base on Oʻahu, Laughing Gull was seen 2 Jun–30 Jul (Kellen Apuna, Michael Young, Kurt Pohlman, Denise LaBerteaux, Bruce Garlinger, Genevieve Sicree, Alexander Christensen). Two birds were reported here on 31 Jul (Richard Fischer), and one of these individuals may have strayed west across the bay, as one Laughing Gull was also reported on 23 Jul at Paepae o Heʻeia (Matthew Medeiros).

Several of the spring’s Franklin’s Gulls also continued into the summer. On Maui, Franklin’s Gull was seen at Kaʻanapali Golf Course on 6 Jul (Nagi Aboulenein, Taghrid Elmeligui) and at Kanahā Pond on 27 Jun, 29 Jun (Lance Tanino, Bradley Jacoby, Rebecca Bicker), and 13 Jul (Nathaniel Watkins). On Hawaiʻi Island, two Franklin’s Gulls were observed at Mauna Lani Golf Course on 2 Jun (Merry Miller). In addition, one bird was seen from Keāhole Point on 2 and 3 Jun (Ken Hess, John Lynch), and from Honokōhau Marina on 5 Jun (Lance Tanino). At the nearby Kealakehe WTP, a single Franklin’s Gull was observed on 2 Jun (Reginald David), 5 Jun (Alex Fronte), and 4 Jul (Reginald David). A high count of two birds occurred there on 5 Jun (Lance Tanino). Prior to this season, there were only six previous summer records of Franklin’s Gull in the Hawaiian Islands (eBird, Pyle & Pyle 2017).

Terns

White Tern exhibits a rather disjointed breeding distribution in the Hawaii Region, nesting in the remote and largely uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as well as in trees lining the bustling city streets of downtown Honolulu on Oʻahu. The species has historically not had much of a presence on Kauaʻi, despite the existence of a small breeding colony on Kaula Rock, just over 50 miles distant (Pyle & Pyle 2017). However, there was an unprecedented number of White Tern reports in the vicinity of Kauaʻi this summer, including three over the course of a single day from Kīlauea Point NWR on 19 Jun (Jeffrey Timmer, Riley Greenfield), one of which involved a sighting of three terns (William Buswell). Two birds were reported on 27 Jun (David Hanna) and on 1 Jul at the adjacent Secret Beach (Ryan Burnett). One White Tern was seen from Kīlauea Point NWR on 14 Jul (Adrian Burke, Mark Hoffman, Brabble Hoffman). Elsewhere on Kauaʻi, White Tern was reported during seawatches on 15 Jun at Kahala Point (Adrian Burke, Keane Sammon) and on 13 Jul at Lāwaʻi (Lucas Stephenson, Mark Stephenson). White Tern was also seen the following day on a pelagic south of Port Allen (Adrian Burke, Keane Sammon, Mark Hoffman, Brabble Hoffman, Ryan Gallagher).

Gray-backed Tern primarily occurs in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, though breeding has been reported on offshore islets in the vicinity of Oʻahu (Mokumanu) and Kauaʻi (Kaula Rock) (Pyle & Pyle 2017). This summer, a Gray-backed Tern was observed relatively close to shore from Kauaʻi’s Makahuena Point on 23 Jun (Stefan Passlick).

Little Tern was reported from Midway Atoll on 16 Jun and 3 Jul (Jonathan Plissner). While this area is a historical nesting spot for the species, confirmation of breeding was not publicly reported this summer. Least Tern was observed at historic nesting locations on Hawaiʻi Island (Kealakehe WTP, 24 Jul, Reginald David) and on Midway Atoll, where up to nine individuals were tallied on 1 Jul (Jonathan Plissner). Least Tern was also reported several times on Oʻahu. An adult was photographed at Nuʻupia Ponds WMA on 2 Jun (Kellen Apuna, Michael Young). The basic-plumaged tern observed at Pearl Harbor NWR on 22 Jun was thought to be a different individual than the Nuʻupia bird (Richard May). Least Tern was observed again at Pearl Harbor NWR 29–31 Jul, though this latter bird was in alternate plumage, lending credence to the idea that there may have been two Least Terns on Oʻahu this summer (Kurt Pohlman, Richard May, Steve Kimball). Kauaʻi also had its own Least Tern sighting in the form of a one-day wonder on the Mānā Plains on 12 Jul (Mark Stephenson, Lucas Stephenson, Adrian Burke, Keane Sammon, Jim Denny). This bird was only the second Least Tern ever confirmed in the County of Kauaʻi; the first occurred at the Waimea River Mouth on 8 Sep 2021 (Kurt Ongman).

The spring’s Black Tern continued on Kauaʻi’s Mānā Plains 14 Jun–3 Jul (Jim Denny, Adrian Burke, Tyler Connell, Keane Sammon, Richard May, David Hanna). This bird, first reported on 24 Apr (Edward Paxton, Pete Morris), was the third known incidence of this species on Kauaʻi as well as the first-ever summer record for the Hawaii Region (Pyle & Pyle 2017).

Petrels and Shearwaters

A Band-rumped Storm-Petrel was observed about 10km south of Oʻahu’s Pearl Harbor on 22 Jun (James Cooper). This species is either confirmed or strongly suspected of breeding on Kauaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi Island (Pyle & Pyle 2017), but detections near Oʻahu are infrequent. In contrast to prior years, Kermadec Petrel was not reported from Kauaʻi’s north shore this summer, where at least one individual has appeared annually since 2011 (Pyle & Pyle 2017). One Kermadec was, however, reported during a 23 Jun seawatch at Makahuena Point along the southern shore of the island (Adrian Burke, Keane Sammon). In the Northwesterns, Kermadec Petrel was seen at Green Island, Kure Atoll, circling and ground-calling two nights in a row, on 3 and 4 Jun (Bret Mossman). The bird was observed once more on 18 Jun (Bret Mossman).

Black-winged Petrel was also reported in the Northwesterns: twice on 1 Jul east of Mokumanumanu (Necker Island) and once on 2 Jul in the vicinity of Nihoa (Bret Mossman). Native to islands north of New Zealand, Black-winged Petrel is primarily observed in Hawaii during fall and spring as it disperses across the Pacific. Buller’s Shearwater, native to New Zealand’s Poor Knights Islands, passed by Kēōkea BP on the northern tip of Hawaiʻi Island on 13 Jun (Lance Tanino, Brandon Sullivan, Killian Sullivan). Sooty Shearwater was observed from Port Allen, Kauaʻi, on a handful of occasions this summer: two were seen on 9 Jun (Adrian Burke) and one bird was reported on 18 Jun (Adrian Burke) and 20 Jun (Adrian Burke, Jeffrey Timmer). Sooty Shearwater was also reported from Keāhole Point on Hawaiʻi Island on 8 Jun (Kirk Huffstater). The typical seasonal occurrence of this species in Hawaii is bimodal: there are pulses of migratory birds in spring and fall, with a pronounced lull in summer.

Christmas Shearwater, named for Christmas Island (Kiritimati), breeds throughout the tropical Pacific, including the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. There are smaller nesting colonies within the Main Hawaiian Islands, but sightings there are infrequent. One Christmas Shearwater was reported during a 4 Jul Makahuena Point seawatch on Kauaʻi (Keane Sammon) and three were reported south of Pearl Harbor, Oʻahu on 22 Jun (James Cooper). Newell’s Shearwater nests primarily on Kauaʻi but is occasionally observed elsewhere in the island chain. Sightings outside of the immediate vicinity of Kauaʻi this summer included one bird 20km south of Nihoa on 2 Jul (Bret Mossman), one bird south of Oʻahu on 22 Jun (James Cooper), and several birds eastbound past Kēōkea BP on the northern tip of Hawaiʻi Island on 11 Jul (Lance Tanino, Brabble Hoffman, Mark Hoffman).

Frigatebird through Ibis

Magnificent Frigatebird was reported at Kauaʻi’s Kīlauea Point NWR on 28 Jun (Richard May), 9 Jul (Eric VanderWerf, David Hanna), and 18 Jul (Lance Tanino, Michael Young). This species breeds throughout the Caribbean and in tropical South and Central America (Diamond and Schreiber 2020). The Kauaʻi bird, first noticed amid the throngs of Great Frigatebirds above the refuge on 17 Aug 2023 (David Sibley), was a regional first as well as only the second occurrence of the species west of the U. S. West Coast (eBird, Gibson & Kessel 1992). A Nazca Booby was sitting with Masked Booby—with which it was considered conspecific until the split in 2000—on Kure Atoll on 6 and 14 Jun (Bret Mossman). On Midway, a Nazca Booby was perched in an ironwood on the west end of the old runway on 20 and 25 Jun (Jonathan Plissner). On 24 Jul, two Nazca Boobies were seen: one was sitting in the same ironwood and the other was sitting near a chick which had been previously observed with a Masked Booby parent (Jonathan Plissner).

Snowy Egret appeared at Hawaiʻi Island’s Kealakehe WTP on 20 Jun (Reginald David). Most likely this was the same bird which was reported once at nearby ʻAimakapā Pond earlier this year, on 24 Mar (Rick Taylor). Exact quantification of historical records is muddled by Snowy Egret’s similarity to Eurasia’s Little Egret which, while less likely in Hawaii, is still possible (Pyle & Pyle 2017). A White-faced Ibis was observed at Pearl Harbor NWR on 6 Jun—possibly an individual continuing from spring (Michael Young). White-faced Ibis was also seen at Hanalei NWR 15 Jul (Jonathan Horst) on several additional occasions through the end of Jul (Lucas Stephenson, Mark Stephenson, Steve Laymon, avid Hanna, Ian Kane, Justin Ferguson).

Passerines

Lavender Waxbill is native to western Africa and seems to have been introduced to Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island in the 1960s (Pyle & Pyle 2017). Reports in recent years have centered around small pockets along the Kona coast of Hawaiʻi Island, but a small population persisted in eastern Oʻahu. This summer, Lavender Waxbill was reported in the island’s upper ʻĀina Haina neighborhood on 1 Jun (Kyle Edwards).

Hawaii’s honeycreepers are descended from an ancestral flock of Asiatic finches which diversified into a stunning array of fifty species. Unfortunately, island endemics are uniquely vulnerable to introduced threats, and two thirds of this diversity has already been lost. In recent years, mosquito-borne avian malaria in particular has wrecked havoc against the honeycreepers: warming temperatures have allowed the insects to encroach upon the last remaining high-elevation refugia, and most native passerines are woefully under-equipped to resist the onslaught of foreign disease. Several species—including ʻAkikiki, Kiwikiu and ʻAkekeʻe—are forecast to go extinct in the wild within the next decade if current mosquito-driven population declines are not reversed (Paxton et al., 2022).

One year after the announcement in July of 2023 that only five ʻAkikiki remained in the wilds of Kauaʻi (Dennison 2023), there were no public reports of the species generated (eBird). Easily the most critically endangered of the Hawaiian honeycreepers, the species has been in drastic decline due to a suite of foreign-introduced factors, but mosquito-borne avian malaria arguably struck the hardest in recent years. Captive breeding efforts are ongoing, and strategies for landscape-level control of Culex quinquefasciatus are beginning to be implemented (Birds Not Mosquitoes).

Palila’s distribution once stretched across multiple islands, but today it is relegated to dry, native forest on the slopes of Mauna Kea on the Island of Hawaiʻi. The last extant member of an original 16 “finch-billed” honeycreeper species, Palila undertakes elevational movements in tandem with the ripening of the māmane tree. The birds can thus often be far removed from their namesake Palila Discovery Trail, which was once a relatively reliable place to observe them. Despite near-weekly detections there and farther up the mountain this summer, and a maximum of seven birds reported on 27 Jul (Jiahua Zing, Yinan Wu, Wanda Yang), the species remains in peril. The 2021 census estimated a global population of 452–940 birds, and the overarching population trend is a staggering 89% decline over the course of a 23-year monitoring period (Genz et al. 2022). 2024 data suggest that the population is likely closer to 300 individuals (pers. comm.).

A pair of Red-crested Cardinals was observed on Hawaiʻi Island at Hāpuna Beach SP on 3 Jul (Robin DeMeo), and individuals were seen in the area on 10 Jul (Sherman Wing) and 28 Jul (Pippa Swannell). While this species is sporadically reported on Hawaiʻi Island, it never became fully established like on most of the other Main Hawaiian Islands (Pyle and Pyle 2017). Yellow-faced Grassquit is native to Central America and the Caribbean. It was first observed on Oʻahu in 1974—presumably the result of escaped cage birds (Pyle & Pyle 2017). In addition to the pocket of observations clustered in the usual ʻĀhuimanu Loop on Oʻahu’s north shore 19 Jun–7 Jul (Lance Tanino, Kellen Apuna, Kurt Pohlman, Richard May, Michael Young, William Buswell, Adrian Burke, Ben Cole), the species was also observed elsewhere on island. One grassquit was heard and seen from the Mānoa Cliff Trail Restoration Area on 21 Jul (Kellen Apuna). Four individuals—including two females visiting a nest—were also seen at Koko Crater Botanical Garden on 10 Jul (Dotty Doherty, Bruce Evans, Toni Evans).

Citations

Birds Not Mosquitoes. Accessed 3 Mar 2024. https://www.birdsnotmosquitoes.org/

Dennison, D. “Only Five ʻAkikiki Left in Mountains of Kauaʻi and Their Chances of Survival are Slim.” Department of Land and Natural Resources. 13 Jul 2023. https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/blog/2023/07/13/nr23-114/

Diamond, A. W. and E. A. Schreiber. 2020. Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (A. R. Poole and F. B. Gill, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.magfri.01. Accessed 6 Oct 2024.

eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance. Accessed 10 Sep 2024. ebird.org

Genz, A. S., K. W. Brinck, C. K. Asing, L. Berry, R. J. Camp, and P. C. Banko. 2022. 2019-2021 Palila abundance estimates and trend. Hawaii Cooperative Studies Unit Technical Report HCSU-101. University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, Hawaii, USA. 20 pp. https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/70227797.

Gibson, D. D. and B. Kessel. 1992. Seventy-four new avian taxa documented in Alaska 1976-1991. The Condor. 94:454-461.

Johnson, N. C., S. M. Haig, S. M. Mosher, and J. P. Hollenbeck. 2017. Reproductive success of Mariana Swiftlets (Aerodramus bartschi) on the Hawaiian Island of Oʻahu. Journal of Field Ornithology. 88(4):362-373.

Paxton, E. H., M. Laut, S. Enomoto, M. Bogardus. 2022. Hawaiian forest bird conservation strategies for minimizing the risk of extinction: Biological and biocultural considerations. Hawai‘i Cooperative Studies Unit Technical Report HCSU-103. University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, Hawaii, USA. 125 pages. http://hdl.handle.net/10790/5386

Pyle, R. L., and P. Pyle. 2017. The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands: Occurrence, History, Distribution, and Status. B. P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI, U.S.A. Version 2 (1 January 2017). http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/birds/rlp-monograph

Wiles, G. J., and D. H. Woodside. 1999. “History and Population Status of Guam Swiftlets on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi. ʻElepaio. 59(7):57-61.

Report processed by Andrew Keaveney, 16 Mar 2025.