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Manu Minute
Wednesdays
Hosted by Patrick Hart

Need a break in your day? Whether you're in your car or still in bed, Manu Minute brings you rich sounds from Hawai'i's native forests and shorelines. Each week, we feature a different Hawaiʻi bird and its unique song, and talk about its environment and conservation.

Trying to identify a bird? Call us on The Conversation's talkback line at 808-792-8217 with your name, your location and your email.

Manu Minute is a collaboration between HPR and the LOHE Bioacoustics Lab at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. The series is hosted by Patrick Hart, the lab's principal investigator, and produced by HPR's Savannah Harriman-Pote and UH Hilo's Ann Tanimoto-Johnson.

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  • Java sparrows are grey-colored with pinkish bellies and white under-tail coverts. They have striking black heads with large white cheek patches and red eye rings, like spectacles.
    Manu Minute: The broad-beaked Java sparrow
    Would you look at the beak on that one? That’s right, we’re talking about Java sparrows, who can be recognized by their less-than-dainty beaks. But we’ve also got their lovely calls for you, thanks to the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
  • Like many shorebirds, ΄akekeke make non-stop migrations across the northern Pacific to Alaska in order to breed. They spend the summer in the Arctic where they can take advantage of abundant food resources.
    Manu Minute: The rattling ΄akekeke
    We’ve got a little sandpiper for you today. Its rattling call gives you a clue to its name. With recordings from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and Xeno Canto, University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo professor Patrick Hart brings you the Manu Minute.
  • Manu Minute: The crested ΄ākohekohe
    With fewer than 2,000 individuals remaining, ΄ākohekohe are a rare sight. At just over 7 inches, ΄ākohekohe are one of Maui's largest honeycreepers. But their most distinctive features are their white-grey crests just above their beaks.
  • Image 1: A male Indian peafowl, also known as a peacock.
    Manu Minute: How did the peacock get its tail?
    In spite of their lavish appearance, Indian peafowl are actually quite common. Native to India and Sri Lanka, these birds have been introduced throughout the world. We have their song for you, thanks to the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology.
  • ΄Ua΄u kani, also known as wedge-tailed shearwaters, are mainly dark brown-grey with light-colored white underparts. As their name describes, they have wedge-shaped tails. Their bills are long, slender, and slightly hooked. Their wingspan is over 3 feet.
    Manu Minute: The moaning wedge-tailed shearwater
    The moaning wedge-tailed shearwater is the star of Manu Minute today, thanks to recordings from the Macaulay Library at Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology.
  • Red-billed leiothrix are brightly colored birds with olive-green plumage on their heads, napes, and backs. Their throats are bright yellow-orange, and their wings are olive-brown with red, orange, and yellow striped patches. They have bright red bills with pinkish-yellow legs and feet, and forked tails.
    Manu Minute: The tricky red-billed leiothrix
    At just over 5 inches beak to tail, the red-billed leiothrix is small enough to sit comfortably in the palm of your hand. But don't underestimate them — their song packs a punch.
  • Hunakai, also known as Sanderlings, are small-medium sized shorebirds, between 7-8 inches long with wingspans of almost 14 inches. Due to their small size, they’re often referred to as one of the “peep” sized sandpipers.
    Manu Minute: Sanderlings in the sea foam
    There are a few more weeks to spot the visiting sanderlings, which come to Hawaiʻi every winter. We've got their song for you, thanks to the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology.
  • Palila are large for native honeycreepers, just a bit smaller than the regular red Northern cardinals you may see in your backyard. They have yellow heads with black lores, yellow breasts, and white-cream colored bellies. Males are more brightly colored yellow than females.
    Manu Minute: The pleasant palila
    The palila is the last finch-billed native honeycreeper. These rare birds have all but vanished from the Hawaiian Islands, with the exception of a few small patches of high elevation forest on the west side of Maunakea on Hawai'i Island.
  • California quails are about the size of a football with grey-blue plumage on their chests and backs and scaled bellies. Their most distinctive feature is their curled black head knots, made up of six plume feathers that droop forward.
    Manu Minute: The Cali valley quail
    This week, we've got a transplant from the Golden State. University of Hawai'i at Hilo professor Patrick Hart introduces us to the California quail.
  • Northern cardinals are approximately 9 inches long; males are a vivid red color, and have a red crest with black masks and chins, with sizeable red bills for eating seeds.
    Manu Minute: Manu ʻula ʻula, the red bird
    The Northern cardinal is the ruby in the crown of any backyard birder. We've got their song, thanks to the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology.
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