Cities Are Weird. There Are No Goonies.

Honolulu makes me tired.  I am currently operating from a bunk bed in Waikiki.  I went to sleep too late last night, and then I woke up too early this morning.  Most of my day was occupied with finding a bed in this hostel near Waikiki Beach.  I guess there must be a big weekend planned here because everything is hella booked.  I walked around town for a few hours, had some good food, and feasted my eyes on beautiful exotic birds like Red-crested Cardinal and Zebra Dove.  Seeing these birds makes one's heart ache for the comfort of a million goonybirds.  Since this is the last time I'll be able to post goonies for a while, today's TPAD is dedicated to them.

So much better than Red-crested Cardinal or Red-vented Bulbul.

I relocated the most recent Short-tailed Albatross yesterday.  We hadn't seen her in at least a week, so it was nice to get one more look.  I think she just wanted to say goodbye.  Or maybe Aloha.

Craycray

Sorry, today's post is eerily similar to yesterday.  One photo of a STAL, one of a crawly little critter.  We relocated the Short-tailed that arrived yesterday.  Still here.  And she's about a quarter mile closer to the other Short-tailed than she was yesterday.  Love is in the air.  Also, I did some native plant work today and found a bunch of disgusting centipedes while digging in the dirt.  I was scared.  if one of these things bites you, you're dead within 4 seconds.  And I wasn't even wearing gloves.  I'm craycray.  

Awful creatures.  I'm sure there is absolutely nothing good about them.

Conveniently standing in front of a white wall.

Star-crossed Lovers

Do you ever feel lonely and out of place?  Like you are far from home, unfamiliar faces staring at you from all directions?  I do.  And so do birds sometimes.  Of course, these birds are the most exciting ones for someone like me, but I think it's important to stop and feel sad for them once in a while.  Today, a new Short-tailed Albatross showed up on the front lawn of the Midway House.  Annie One-sock just happened to be cycling by and spotted her with her keen eagle-eye.  This is a bird that was born in Japan.  She's about 4 or 5 years old.  She has somehow found her way here to Midway, where there are basically no other Short-tailed Albatrosses to hang out with.  Actually, there is the one single guy out by the runway, and he's pretty lonely too.  But these two probably have no idea that the other exists.  Isn't that heartbreaking?  I mean, they could be fucking soul-mates for all I know, and they're stuck on opposite ends of a remote island.  Anyway, here you go.

Look at that mug.  Adorable.

This is a gecko that i found in our golf cart today.  Just another free spirit out there, lost and out of place.  All alone.  I don't know what kind it is yet.  I'll go look it up in a while and tell y'all later.  I don't feel like it now.

I Am A Fat Coward

I just got back from playing soccer with the Thais.  It nearly killed me.  God I've gotten old and worthless.  I could barely walk out after playing for like an hour.  So cowardly.  I did pretty well.  Almost scored a few times.  I tower over all of the Thai guys of course, so they are all terrified of me.  But still, I brought great shame to my country, drenched in sweat, on the verge of collapse.  I publicly vow to run around like an idiot more often, until the very idea of exercise doesn't make me light-headed.  I pinky swear.

Same old Noddy Party out at Frigate Point.  Can you find the one that doesn't fit in with the others?

Short-tailed Albatross are not immune to the Bloodlust.  Apparently, the loner  bird that thinks he's a Black-footed got into a scrape yesterday.  I don't know if this is his blood or someone else's, but somebody clearly lost the fight.  I'm assuming the BFAL of his affections finally lost her temper and gave him what for.

Do You Even Know Who You Are Anymore?

Do you see yourself how other people see you?  Hella doubtful.  Most likely your self perception is drastically skewed.  You think you're super dumb and ugly, but it turns out some people think you've got a hot ass and you think about interesting and complex shit.  Or maybe you fancy yourself quite the socialite.  Everybody's best friend.  But actually, everyone hates your guts and thinks you're an asshole.  I've just been told by a reliable British source that it's likely a combination of the two.  Somewhere in the middle of what you see and what they see.  In any case, it turns out that there's much confusion on this subject in the bird world too.  Out here, I see birds every day that have absolutely no clue who the fuck they are.  Here are a few of my faves:

This Short-tailed Albatross thinks it's a Black-footed Albatross.  It spends most of its time trying to mate with that Black-footed Albatross right there, which is of course looking away in disgust.  It even bullies the BFAL off of her nest and sits on the egg whenever it gets the chance.  So confused.

This Booby thinks it's a Goony.  This bird has been incubating an albatross egg for several weeks now.  Identity crisis?

Goonies With Hats

I spent most of today helping Scott remove the data logger tags from goonies that have been wearing them for the last year.  Scott has been tracking seabirds for years and is the guy who discovered the Sooty Shearwater migration route.  Super interesting stuff.  The method for getting these tags off is a bit different from our normal routine, so I took some photos while we worked.


In about an hour, the New Year's Eve festivities will begin.  Dinner, Bingo, and the fabulous Chugach Band will be the agenda for tonight.  I plan on raging to the fullest extent of my abilities.  It's still 2011!  Kegstands!

This is the cute, outdoorsy look.  

We keep a few Short-tailed Albatross out in the garage.  One of them is quite the baseball fan.

Mind Bottling

We were invaded by 15 new volunteer bird counters in the night.  At breakfast, I waded through unfamiliar faces to find my bacon, eggs, and coffee.  After breakfast I searched the freshwater seeps on the island for signs of Botulism (dead ducks).  I found one, a Northern Pintail.  Life is Pain.  Most of the rest of the day was spent entering data and banding Laysan Albatross on Eastern Island.  It was fun.  We even walked by the adult male Golden Goony.  He is spectacular.  His head is made of solid gold.  Tonight, a bunch of VIPs are flying in.  I think it's the head of Fish &Wildlife or some such person.  Cray cray.  I guess there's gonna be a fat rager to welcome him on Island.  I better go get cleaned up for the meet and greet.

Frigatebird identification baffles me.  It's mindbottling.  You know, like when your mind feels like it's in a bottle?  I'm pretty sure this is just a Great Frigatebird (not the fabled Lesser that I search for in vain every day).  But I'm not really sure why...

The Short-tailed Albatross of Eastern Island hanging out with his fake friends.  Check out how much bigger and cooler he is than the surrounding Laysans.

It's So Tailed Around Here

I saw two lifers yesterday.  Short-tailed Albatross (sofuckingsickiknowright) and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper.  They both have very unique tails.  I'm sure that I can obtain better photos of these birds in the future, so I'm not sure I'll put them up today.  I continue to wake closer to California time, but I am switching over.  I've got to get over to the Chow Hall for breakfast before our first real day of work.  Mahalo.

Bristle-thighed Curlew.  You can tell because of the bristles.  This is one of my several Life Birds thus far.  

Short-tailed Albatross.  This is one of just a few left in the world.  And one of maybe three or four that will be seen on Midway this year.  Pete says that this bird looks to be about 8 years old or so.  This is the best bird ever.  Period.