Nonstop Erotica

Bristle-thighed Curlews debate leaving Midway for the Arctic. Who would want to leave this?
Nonstop erotica, huh? Seems to me that birdwatching and erotica just don't go very well together. They are two very, very different things. I have lead a lot of Audubon trips, and let me tell you, sex is usually not the topic of the day.

But underlying the veneer of abstinence and geekdom is a flowing current of sex. Much bird research, after all, deals with breeding behavior and the various statistics that are somehow extracted from the data we collect.....and that cannot be ignored.

Which is neither here nor there. It is well-documented that birders are capable of breeding, for good or ill. Yes, you are right, I am lacking direction. What am I talking about? I'm obviously not in any position to tell you. Maybe The Island is rewiring my brain.....people here have a terrible obsession with watching Lost.....yes, it's all starting to make sense now.

Highlights of the day: 2 Little Terns (one calling, confirming its non-Least Tern identity), a flock of 200+ Bristle-thighed Curlews, my first Laysan Ducklings of Sand Island, and Hawaiian Monk Seal, Galapagos Sharks and Manta Rays all hanging out at one spot in the harbor. Oh yeah, and having some anonymous bird shit directly onto my eye.



A young male Laysan Duck. Action-quack shot. Ducklings are popping up all over the atoll now.



I am very proud of Halsey the White Tern chick. She is a sweetie. She sits on her wall all day and looks cute.