Ka’ena Point Trail The Wai’anae Mountains were formed by an ancient shield volcano Walking along the 2.5-mile long Ka’ena Point trail, I was amazed by the mountainous peaks that were to my left. I would later come to learn that these were the Wai’anae Mountains, also known as the Wai’anae Range. This rock formation includes […]
Waipi’o Valley News There are some portions of the road that have a grade of 45% Waipi’o Valley is one of the most challenging places to visit on the big island of Hawai’i. There is an access road on the south entrance to the valley that has a 25% average grade. There are some portions […]
Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area Kauna’oa Point connects two beaches This photo of four kiawe trees was taken while hiking between Hāpuna Beach and Mauna Kea Beach through the Kauna’oa Point. This hike is called the Ala Kahakai Trail, and it is located along the northwest coast of the big island of Hawai’i. Like almost […]
White Ibis – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern The bill is bright red orange I took this photo while staying on Longboat Key on the Gulf Coast of Florida. There were thousands of birds wading on the shore each day here. It was a birdwatcher’s paradise. The American white ibis was one of the many […]
Willet – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern There were hundreds if not thousands of birds This photo was taken on the beach at Longboat Key in Florida just off the coast of Sarasota. I took this on the same trip that I took the photo of the American white ibis. There were hundreds if not […]
Coquina – iNaturalist Looking out across the water you could watch as brown pelicans soared looking for their next meal Watching the waves come crashing down on the long, slowly-rising beach of the Atlantic coast of Florida is one of life’s greatest pleasures. I took this photo at 6:45am one morning in June. The waves […]
Florida Box Turtle – IUCN Conservation Status: Vulnerable The Florida box turtle is only found in southeastern Georgia and Florida I ran when I first saw this Florida box turtle. I didn’t run away from it; instead, I ran towards it. It was teetering on a ledge about three feet off the ground over a […]
Rock Pigeon – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern Pigeons have a compact sturdy build Pigeons are a common sight in urban environments around the world. This particular bird is a rock dove, or rock pigeon. Despite their prevalence, few people understand the importance of this species to the ecosystem. Ruddy Turnstone Pigeons have a compact, […]
Ruddy Turnstone – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern This ruddy turnstone is missing its right foot This small shorebird is called a ruddy turnstone. They are found on beaches across the world. In the United States, we can find them on both coasts, typically in the spring and fall. Despite sounding like a beach bum bird, these birds […]
National Weather Service Clouds are described in three categories: cumuloform, stratoform, or cirroform. This month our gallery theme is “Clouds”. We will be exploring the different types of clouds that blanket earth. A man named Luke Howard was the first to publish a classification system for cloud types. He published this cloud classification system back in 1802! We still […]