Birds of a Feather

 

Cinnamon Cockatiel

Zoo escapee 

Gold and Blue Macaw

Red Crowned Parrot

Scarlet Crested Cockatoo

Sam

The Menehune

The Menehune are a Hawaiian race of very reclusive, dwarfish people who are believed to live in the forests and jungles of the island chain, Kaua’i in particular, and are said to have constructed the famous Alekoko Fishpond overnight nearly 1,000 years ago. The 900-foot-long stone wall encloses an area of around six acres and is constructed with basalt rock. It allows the water to come in during high tide, and when the surf goes out the fish are trapped for easy harvesting. The Menehune have oft been sited as being expert builders and engineers, and the wonders they are thought responsible for are said to spring up overnight.

Some believe the Menehune’s arrows and spears have magical effects, much like Cupid’s arrows, and that if they pierce the heart, rather than do injury, they invoke a feeling of affection or love.

The Jungle

The jungle off Shipwreck Beach is dense and lush, populated with a variety of mammals, birds, reptiles… arthropods. A small salt-water lagoon sits just inside the sea cliff beyond the berm. Coconut Palms, Breadfruit trees, Screw pines, Hala, and Acacia Koa trees proliferate here. It’s a dark, mysterious jungle, and is seldom explored by the locals. Bird calls fill the air, and the sound of the waves breaking on the shore create a discordant but soothing natural soundscape. The scent of the damp, musky jungle mingles with the salty sea aroma from the beach.

The Beach

The golden sand is perfect for sunbathing and forms a long strand along Kaua’i’s southeastern shore. The scene is serene and pristine, the beach only interrupted by occasional sandcastles.

Something shiny at the edge of the water in the sand catches your attention. You find a couple coins. One is an eight-sided slug, the other seems to be an 18th century gold piece.