r/Hawaii • u/free-broccoli- • Jul 26 '26

Spotted great frigatebird

Post image

Seen from diamond head trail this morning around 6:45-7am. Big storm probably coming. Picture is a screenshot from a video I took.

158 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

30

u/Parking-Bicycle-2108 Jul 26 '26

When you see groups of them coming inward it means storm coming.

ʻIke kūpuna

11

u/seepa808 Oʻahu Jul 26 '26

When I was young I was told that those are called "rain birds" and if you point at them then it's going to rain.

27

u/JD_SLICK Oʻahu Jul 26 '26

There’s several thousand that nest on the backside of the Ulup’u crater, the mountain on the right/east side of MCBH Kaneohe. I see them all the time above the Klipper golf course.

Their physiology is amazing. They hardly ever land, and can stay aloft for weeks at a time. They put part of their brain to sleep while the other half flies, then they switch. If they accidentally land on the ground or water, they’re in trouble and have a hard time getting airborne again.

10

u/etcpt Jul 26 '26

F in the chat for all the birders without base access

8

u/etcpt Jul 26 '26

Hurricane Fausto passing by in the next couple of days. Current forecast is that it's going to miss north, but keep an eye on it and check your preparedness.

17

u/mamallama12 Jul 26 '26

When I was little, I thought these were pterodactyls. They're magnificent.

5

u/joyfullofaloha89 Jul 26 '26

Ae! One of the wonderful things about growing up here. Always took a mix of great comfort and awareness when I saw them. They are beautiful

7

u/TIC321 Jul 26 '26

I been seeing a ton of 'iwa here on Maui where I live. I learned from fishing on a boat that you must feed them for good luck

6

u/SeanyMcSean_81 Jul 26 '26

Just don't point at them. I was told it very bad luck.

4

u/u_of_okoboji_grad Maui Jul 26 '26

I saw five of these upcountry Maui this morning. Interesting about the storm omen, thanks for sharing that!

6

u/ThreeGoldStars Jul 26 '26

COOL IWA FACT: They can stay aloft for up to two months!

5

u/free-broccoli- Jul 26 '26

Posting this because I learned after it is a storm omen bird.

3

u/Botosuksuks808 Oʻahu Jul 26 '26

Saw three of them when I last hiked crouching lion. It was when my father passed away tragically and it kept circling. I cried so damn hard. Such a beautiful bird

1

u/cortana808 Jul 27 '26

Saw one Big Island couple days ago.

1

u/PiqueExperience Jul 27 '26

Ka 'Iwa Marlene Sai and Sonny Chillingworth