March 12-20, 2026 with Sam Wilson & Mandy Talpas
What is it like to go bird watching during a one-in-twenty-year tropical storm? Had we known the actual intensity of the storm and the extent of the damage it wrought across the Hawaiian Islands before our departure, it would have been an easy decision to cancel. Weather predictions varied, but high winds and heavy rain are nothing new to the islands. There was considerable uncertainty in the forecast, and those living on the islands were accustomed to these frequent storm events, known locally as a Kona Low. Unfortunately, this storm brought power outages, extremely high winds, catastrophic flooding, infrastructure damage, downed trees across highways, and airline delays that persisted well into the following week. Despite these obstacles—especially during the first few days—we always had good meals, comfortable accommodations (with power!), and we still managed to track down some excellent birds.
Oahu received an incredible 18 inches of rain during our visit, much of it overnight, and yet we still managed to see a few Oahu Amakihi battling the wind on the first day in the foothills. White Tern chicks clung to their precarious, bare-branch perches in the blowing winds in downtown Honolulu. After encountering traffic and flooding on the north shore we heeded warnings about worsening conditions and turned around to find some reprieve back in Honolulu. On our second full day, the sky cleared for a few magical hours, allowing us to find the globally rare Bristle-thighed Curlew on a golf course on the North Shore. This was a welcome victory, and although we missed Oahu Elepaio due to flooding, we were able to move on to Kaua'i.
Kaua'i presented its own set of challenges from accidents and flood damage, but once again we persevered, making it to the lookout at Kilauea Point in time to see Red-tailed Tropicbirds before they retired for the day. We also checked off Laysan Albatross, Red-footed Booby, Brown Booby, and several others. Our first looks at Nene (Hawaiian Goose) were another highlight, as was a special view of nesting albatross.
Waimea Canyon Road is world-famous for its views into the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific," carved over millions of years by heavy rainfall eroding the volcanic island's mountains. That same intense rainfall had a more immediate effect on our ability to reach the top of the road, though we eventually made our way up to search for rare forest birds. Unfortunately, the highland forest birds of Kaua'i have been devastated by invasive species and avian malaria, making our visit to Koke'e all the more sobering. The past two years in particular have been especially hard on Kaua'i's forest birds, and our only targets were Kauai Elepaio and Apapane. In the past, Anianiau was relatively common and Kauai Amakihi was readily seen. The Amakihi is no longer found within the state park and is vanishing quickly from its core range in the remote Alaka'i Swamp. Anianiau, once one of the most common honeycreepers in the highlands, has been reduced to a single known pair remaining in Koke'e State Park—which we did not see. The culprit is avian malaria, and the accelerating decline is likely due to a warming climate that allows mosquitoes to reach higher into the mountains, leaving the birds with nowhere left to retreat.
After the difficulties on Kaua'i, we moved on to a more encouraging situation on Hawaii's Big Island. Our first stop was the Palila Discovery Trail, where we expected a similar story with declining populations of the grosbeak-like honeycreeper called Palila. Hawaii Amakihi and Hawaii Elepaio still hold on strongly in the reserve, though the Palila itself appeared to be nearly, if not entirely, gone from the preserve based on the lack of sightings. We quickly found our target Amakihi and Elepaio while finally enjoying some comfortable weather! I was awestruck when, during a group break, I looked up to spot what appeared to be a large finch perched atop a māmane tree (a native Hawaiian bush). One look through binoculars confirmed it: a very welcome Palila sighting! Two were present that day, and on the following tour we saw five in the preserve—an encouraging sign after witnessing the decline of native birds firsthand on the other islands. We continued through nearby parks and preserves in search of non-native but ABA-countable specialties, and were fortunate to see a flock of nine Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse fly overhead, along with Gray Francolin, Eurasian Skylark, and Rosy-faced Lovebird.
We spent our last day driving up the slopes of Mauna Kea, an extinct volcano, to the remarkable Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, which requires special vehicles and permits for access. It was a phenomenal day of birding, and we tracked down the "big three" scarcities: Akepa, Akiapola'au, and Hawaii Creeper. We also had our first 'I'iwi sightings of the trip—a classic native Hawaiian bird now reachable by birdwatchers only on this island—with many excellent views of this strikingly beautiful species. The drive back down took us through thick fog, but we still managed a quick look at Pueo (Hawaiian Short-eared Owl) before enjoying a nice departing meal in the small town of Kona.
Mandy and I sincerely thank all participants who took the rain, wind, flight delays, and road challenges in stride. Working closely with our office staff, we made the unworkable work, and were able to check off the majority of the native birds—and quite a few non-natives—we had hoped to see, along with a few pleasant surprises. Perhaps there was a little adventure and glimmer of hope for the birds to be found in the aftermath of a 20-year storm after all. Here's to seeing you again next time under blue skies, and once more hearing the rich warble of a Palila on the slopes of Mauna Kea.
Mammal list:
Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata)
Hawaiian Monk Seal (Neomonachus schauinslandi)
Eurasian Wild Pig (Sus scrofa)
Herps:
Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas)
Gold Dust Day Gecko (Phelsuma laticauda)
Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)
Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei)
Coqui (Eleutherodactylus coqui)
Jackson's Chamaleon (Trioceros jacksonii)
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/573030
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/hai26aTRIPLIST.pdf
-- Sam