RENNELL ISLAND: SOLOMON ISLANDS

10 April: RENNELL ISLAND in the Solomon Islands. This island nation gained
its independence in 1978. It is, perhaps, best known for the World War II
battles on Guadalcanal in 1942. The islands have only been open for safe
tourist travel since 2007-09. We felt lucky to be able to visit. Travelers
to Rennell Island are an absolute rarity! Rennell is the most southerly and
geographically isolated island in the archipelago. It is largely flat and
lacks a central mountain range. About 80% of the island is still covered in
tropical forests. At 6:30 am, we landed near Lavanguu Village, on Rennell
Island, a raised coral atoll, for a morning of tropical rainforest birding.
Five bird species are endemic to only this island. I saw all of them:
Rennell White-eye, Bare-eyed White-eye, Rennell Starling and Rennell
Fantail. In addition, we added several species which are endemic to the
Solomon Islands as a whole. These included: Mackinlay's Cuckoo-dove,
Finsch's Pygmy Parrot, Singing Parrot, Island Thrush, Rennell Gerygone and
Cardinal Myzomela. The people of Rennell Island are Polynesians, whereas on
the other islands of the Solomons, the people are Melanesians. At Rennell
Island we took on four local Customs Officials from the Solomon Islands.
They were to remain on board our ship for the duration of our time in this
young island nation. Upon our departure of Rennell, we spotted a kettle of
nearly 350 frigatebirds! Unfortunately, they were too far away to be
identified as to whether or not they were Greater or Lesser Frigatebirds.
Finally, a single Lesser Frigatebird flew over our ship, a lifer for many on
board, if not all.
Debi Shearwater, in the Solomon Islands

CORAL SEA

7 - 9 April: At sea in the CORAL SEA. We've left behind the southern ocean
albatrosses, instead replaced them with more tropical seabirds. These
included higher counts of Tahiti Petrels and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters; one
Providence Petrel, many Gould's Petrels, Tropical Shearwaters, presumably
one Polynesian Storm-Petrel, White-tailed Tropicbirds; Masked, Red-footed
and Brown Boobies; Greater and Lesser Frigatebirds; Sooty Terns and Black
and Brown Noddies. The single Polynesian Storm-Petrel was with a feeding
flock of Wedge-tails and noddy terns prior to the morning wakeup call.
Unfortunately, no announcement was made to the general ship. So, most on
board missed this singular sighting! Neither of the two leaders saw the
bird, either. This was quite a disappointment since no other sightings have
been made of this species.
Debi Shearwater, at sea in the Western Pacific

NEW CALEDONIA!

6 April: NEW CALEDONIA: Owing to our bonus trip up to Mt. Koghi the day
before, we were eager to tick the remaining endemic species of this very
large island. Wake up call was at 3 am and we were landing by 4:30 am. It
was a 45 minute ride by bus to the entrance of Parc Provincial de la Riviere
Bleue. There, we met with the ranger for another 40 minute ride to a washed
out bridge, walked across the bridge, and another 20 minute ride to reach
the primary forest. Finally, our guide played the tape of Kagu, a night
heron sized bird that walks on the forest floor. This great rarity appeared
from deep inside the forest! This was to be only one of the prize birds of
the day, however. After a lot of effort, we all saw the enigmatic and
declining Crow Honeyeater!! Other highlights of the day included: Whistling
and Brahminy Kites; Rainbow Lorikeet, New Caledonian Parakeet, Glossy
Swiftlet, Sacred Kingfisher, Melanesian and New Caledonian Cuckoo-shrikes;
Green-backed White-eye, Silver-eye, New Caledonian Crow (with a tool!) and
Red-throated Parrot-finch. Very reluctantly, we boarded our bus to leave the
park. A shout for a stop was made to see the final endemic "tick"— the New
Caledonian Goshawk, perched on a small tree! We had recorded every single
one of the endemic birds of New Caledonian— which has never before happened
on this tour! Although not everyone saw every species most of us saw the
bulk of them. I only missed one species. What a most rewarding and
adventurous day we had.
Debi Shearwater, at sea in the Western Pacific

AT SEA & NEW CALEDONIA

4 - 5 April: AT SEA & NEW CALEDONIA: The seas finally calmed and we were no
longer riding in the trough— a relief to many on board. We are now beyond
the Tasman Sea, and entering the Coral Sea where the water warmed
considerably. We continued to make really good time, pushed along by a
favorable current. Gould's Petrels and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters were around
in good numbers. But, the seabird highlight was a Collared Petrel, just off
the bow. If accepted, this will be the first record for the country of
Australia! We arrived at New Caledonia hours ahead of schedule and very much
hoped for an unscheduled landing. The French authorities were not so easy to
deal with, especially as this was Easter Monday. All businesses were closed.
Finally, our staff was able to secure a slew of taxis that would take us to
Mount Koghi, a 45 minute ride. Several of the endemic bird species are
easier to see here, especially the Cloven-feathered Dove. It was a very,
very successful outing! We not only succeeded in finding the dove, but also
Metallic Pigeon, New Caledonian Imperial Pigeon, Horned Parakeet, Streaked
Fantail, Southern Shrikebill, Dark-brown Honeyeater, New Caledonian
Myzomela, New Caledonian Friarbird, Barred Honeyeater and Striated Starling.
On the ride down from the mountain, our taxi driver, Anna, played many
songs, including, "That's Amore"! We sang all the way back to the dock!
Debi Shearwater, at sea in the Western Pacific

NORFOLK ISLAND

3 April - NORFOLK ISLAND: We made a dry landing on the southeast coast of
Norfolk Island, an Australian Territory. The island was discovered by
Captain James Cook in 1774 and is home to the Norfolk Pine. Traveling by
bus, we visited 3 terrific birding sites. Highlights of the day included
meeting the local author, Margaret Christian who has written a book about
the island's bird life. At the botanical gardens, we saw Nankeen Kestrel,
Norfolk Island Parakeet, Crimson Rosella, Grey Fantail, Pacific Robin,
Golden Whistler, Norfolk Gerygone and Slender-billed White-eye. We enjoyed a
wonderful lunch at Margaret & Ken's ranch, while watching soaring Masked
Boobies and Great Frigatebirds. A walk through the forest on the coast,
brought us to many Norfolk Pines which were decorated by roosting Black
Noddies, like Christmas tree ornaments. At the cliff edge, many Red-tailed
Tropicbirds were flying to and from their nests. A tiny white fluff ball of
feathers, hidden under the shrubs was a newly hatched chick! We returned to
our ship after a throughly enjoyable day ashore.
—Debi Shearwater

Western Pacific Odyssey

30 March - 2 April: Along with three of my friends, Yvonne, Tony and Jim, I
boarded the ship, "Spirit of Enderby" in Tauranga, New Zealand about 5 pm on
March 30th. We were about to begin an epic voyage, "The Western Pacific
Odyssey", (WPO) ending in Yokohama, Japan more than a month later. We set
off for the Hauraki Gulf, off North Island, NZ. Highlight of the next day,
was a group of Grey Ternlets, at a known rocky roost. Throughout the next
few days, we kept a constant sea watch, the highlights of which included
several species not previously recorded: Northern Royal Albatross, Buller's
Albatross and both Northern and Southern Giant Petrels. The species
composition mix changed over the course of the three days, but we also
recorded good numbers of the following: Grey-faced and White-necked,
Parkinson's Petrels, Buller's Shearwaters; and smaller numbers of Gibson's,
Wandering, and Campbell Albatrosses; and Black-winged Petrels. The highlight
of the first day was some excellent sightings of New Zealand Storm-Petrel,
while the cetacean highlight was a group of False Killer Whales!

Storm-petrels forever,
Debi Shearwater