discovering distant lands with birds

The last time I flew to Hawaii, I marveled at how far off and isolated from land the island chain is. In fact, it’s the most isolated island chain in the world, being more than 2,000 miles from the nearest continent. While visiting this jewel in the Pacific, I wondered how ancient Polynesian navigators were able to discover this tiny paradise in the midst of a vast ocean, so I did a little research.
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It turns out that the most likely explanation is that a little bird told them about it. In his book, “Voyagers,” the late artist and storyteller Herb Kawainui Kane shares the legend of how ancient Polynesians from islands in the South Pacific followed the migrating Kolea bird — also known as the Pacific Golden Plover — to discover their new home in Hawaii.

​The Pacific Golden Plover, weighing in at only five ounces, flies further than just about any other bird — and does it nonstop. These birds cannot swim, yet they fly over 3,000 miles across open ocean, from their breeding grounds in the Arctic of Western Alaska to their winter range in Hawaii and destinations further south. These tiny birds are very territorial, so as waves of migrants reach Hawaii from Alaska, the best winter foraging sites are claimed, forcing the late arrivals (usually juveniles) to continue flying further south to places like Rapa Nui, Tahiti and even New Zealand. It is these birds that the ancient Polynesians followed north from their origins in the South Pacific to reach Hawaii. 

​Although I didn’t have the opportunity to overwinter in Hawaii this year, it turns out that wintering in Sonoma County is not so bad! Not only is it warm and sunny, there are also plenty of amazing birds to see that like to winter right here, too, with many more stopping by for a rest and a snack during their migrations to destinations beyond. In fact, this past weekend was the Flyway Festival to celebrate the Bay Area’s abundance of birds, and Sonoma Land Trust hosted two birding hikes at Sears Point to get in on the fun. 

​Bird expert Larry Broderick led nearly 50 people down the Bay Trail to spot and learn about the shorebirds, wading birds and waterfowl — and the raptors who hunt them. Many folks on the outing had their first experience seeing a Peregrine Falcon on the hunt. Others marveled at the synchronized flight displays of the Least Sandpipers. And, maybe, someone was inspired to discover the distant lands that our overwintering birds migrate to in the summer … I hear summer in Alaska is amazing.