Mountain Misfits

Field-based natural history, outdoor adventure, photography, and science storytelling from the Northern Rockies and beyond.

Field archive

Category: Birding

  • Hiking the Napali Coast Trail to Hanakapi’ai Beach
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    What a treat it was to explore the Napali Coast Trail with Vida, and we were primed for an adventure along Kauai’s rugged northwest shore. Towering cliffs, lush valleys, and hidden beaches beckoned, and our destination was Hanakapi’ai Beach. This journey was not just a physical escapade; it was an  exploration of the untouched beauty…

  • A Wayward Black-throated Blue Warbler – Navigational Anomalies in Migration

    In the blink of an eye, I was jumping in Sam Koenen’s “Birdvan” and we were off to chase a Black-throated Blue Warbler that lost its way during migration, and it ended up in an apple tree in small, old Lolo, Montana. Soon after arriving the rarity popped into view as it flitted about the…

  • The Oʻahu ʻAmakihi: A Glimpse into its Biology, Endemism, Evolutionary History, and Phylogeny

    Two shots…I got just two shots of an Oʻahu ʻAmakihi (Chlorodrepanis flava), and two photos were enough to scratch my Hawaiian endemic itch. Endemic to the island of Oahu (particularly, the wetter southern area of Oʻahu. Endemism refers to the phenomenon where a species is found exclusively in a particular geographic location, and this isolation…