Wings of the Alakaʻi: A Puaiohi’s Brave First Flight

by Jack Alexander

Puaiohi are a skulky, secretive bird in the Thrush family. They will sit still and stay hidden for as long as you look for them, then suddenly reappear with one loud call. Their harsh, grating call is the best way to find and follow them. Follow them long enough during the breeding season, and they might just lead you back to their nest. Puaiohi build nests of interwoven grass and twigs on small ledges of streamside cliffs in the Alakaʻi Plateau, and during the spring of 2024, field crews from Kauaʻi Forest Bird Recovery Project followed Puaiohi back to as many of these nests as possible to track nesting success of the endangered bird. Puaiohi are threatened by introduced species like rats and cats who predate on eggs, chicks, and incubating mothers. Thatʻs why every chick that successfully leaves the nest, an event known as fledging, is cause for celebration.

Back in May, I was walking down a small stream close to camp to check on a few Puaiohi pairs I knew were incubating chicks. We monitor active nests every 3-4 days during the breeding season to track how many chicks successfully fledge, giving new hope for the survival of the species. That day, I was passing right by a nest my coworker had checked the day before. I planned on walking right by without stopping, as to stay out of the way of any worried parents, but when I glanced over I saw a big ball of grey and white feathers. It was one of the chicks, and it was standing on the rim, ready to fledge. Immediately, my coworker and I started to look for somewhere to sit down and watch. We had to see this.

We found a nice clearing under some ʻōhiʻa, maybe 40 yards from the cliff wall. We could see the two chicks through our binoculars, the older one bravely looking out across the stream. A dense patch of ferns make great landing pads for Puaiohi on their first flight. Over the next hour and a half, we watched this chick make the terrifying decision to fly away from the nest. Luckily for this bird, Puaiohi are actually much safer away from the nest, where they can quickly fly away from predators. The inner turmoil was obvious in the bird’s behavior. It would flap its wings a bit, then step back and reassess. At one point, it seemed to actually start flying, but didn’t manage to let go of the nest. It went completely horizontal before doing a 180 and stepping right back up to its perch.

Eventually, though, the young Puaiohi took off from its nest, flying at a steep angle to the ground across the stream. For the next several weeks, it wouldn’t go far while it learned to fly and forage for itself. In the meantime, frequent visits from mom and dad would mean free meals of ‘ōlapa, lapalapa, kanawao, and ōhelo berries.

Not all Puaiohi chicks are this lucky. Many are eaten before they ever get the chance to fledge. At KFBRP, we deploy hundreds of rat traps in key Puaiohi habitat to prevent their decline, but we can only do so much. I feel incredibly lucky to have seen this event, and I know that this bird will always represent to me the hope and hard work of all the good people working to conserve Kauaʻi’s native ecosystems.