Jordan’s first blog!
Aloha, my name is Jordan, one of the fortunate few who get to live on Hōlanikū (Kure Atoll) for this year. With the summer solstice just behind us we have officially been living on the island for over a month. So much has happened and I have seen so much already that it becomes harder each day to fit into a blog post.
What I want to do instead is focus on some of the plants and animals that stick out to me so far from living on island. Obviously it’s hard not to let the birds steal the majority of this attention as they are simply so beautiful, cute, funny and interesting. Getting to walk past mōlī (Laysan albatross) chicks, slipping, stretching, panting, fighting, etc on a daily basis never gets old. Meeting birds of all ages in the field is something that never fails to brighten my day. Still there are so many other organisms here on Kure that I feel often sit in the background waiting for the spotlight.
First, (to Kayla’s chagrin) I have to mention the spiders of which many species live here with us on Kure. The Cane spiders are the most exciting. Their long spindly legs often get as large as the palm of your hand. Despite the huge fangs which are noticeable if you look closely, they are not aggressive to us humans. One of my favorite showers on the island so far was at night with a red headlamp and a giant cane spider watching quietly from the corner. In the field it’s impossible not to encounter one of the various species of web building spiders. Sadly many of their articulately worked creations fall victim to the push and shove that accompanies my attempt to navigate through thick stands of naupaka (native bushes).
In a similar vein, there’s another creature whose abundant presence could be completely overlooked, it’s only as the sun starts to set that hundreds of thousands of ghost crabs dig themselves out of their burrows and begin to explore the beach. The same off-white color of the sand, they perform one of nature’s most valuable ecological functions, scavenging decaying dead matter. Watching the body of a dead albatross chick on the beach slowly disappear each day makes me appreciate the work of those pointed feet and pinching claws. While ghost crabs have been known to wreak havoc on shorebirds in other parts of the world where they are invasive, it is special to see them in their native habitat.
There are many more organisms that bring happiness to everyday life here on island but they may have to wait until my next blog installment as I have rambled on too long already. I say goodbye as I watch another sunset beckon the night to this side of the world.
Mahalo,
Jordan
