antonsrkn
Hawaiian Goose
I saw this Nene or Hawaiian goose (Branta sandvicensis) in the Kilauea wildlife refuge. This was an exciting find for me as these geese are only found on several of the Hawaiian islands and have been extirpated from the rest and when I previously visited Hawaii 6 years or so ago I tried to find this species but struck out. The Nene is the rarest goose species in the world, however they are pretty common place on Kauai and over the course of my stay I saw close to 30 individuals. In the 1950s the Nene's population was reduced to only 30 birds but due to conservation efforts they have made a comeback, especially on Kauai which is home to 300-400 of these birds. The reason of their decline is in large due to the introduction of nonnative predators such as cats and mongoose, luckily Kauai has no mongooses and the geese are able to thrive there. Lots more photos of Hawaiian geese to come!
Hawaiian Goose
I saw this Nene or Hawaiian goose (Branta sandvicensis) in the Kilauea wildlife refuge. This was an exciting find for me as these geese are only found on several of the Hawaiian islands and have been extirpated from the rest and when I previously visited Hawaii 6 years or so ago I tried to find this species but struck out. The Nene is the rarest goose species in the world, however they are pretty common place on Kauai and over the course of my stay I saw close to 30 individuals. In the 1950s the Nene's population was reduced to only 30 birds but due to conservation efforts they have made a comeback, especially on Kauai which is home to 300-400 of these birds. The reason of their decline is in large due to the introduction of nonnative predators such as cats and mongoose, luckily Kauai has no mongooses and the geese are able to thrive there. Lots more photos of Hawaiian geese to come!