Yap’s gentle giants of the reef prove a bit timid, too

• By Susan Scott
• Feb. 25, 2017

I loved Yap’s super-friendly people, entwined mangrove forests and pristine reefs. It wasn’t what I expected but that’s the beauty of travel. You get to generate your own impressions. Read more

Palau thinks big with laws that protect its ocean life

• By Susan Scott
• Feb. 11, 2017

Today, eight OS guests and I begin exploring Palau’s exploded paint stores and swimming with 1,400 paint chips. It’s almost embarrassing to call this work. Read more

Sharp-eyed fish lurks in the sand stalking prey

• By Susan Scott
• Feb. 4, 2017

Last weekend I made a dozen new friends. One is Ross Lang-ston, an assistant professor of zoology at Windward Community College. The others are his popeyed fish called sandburrowers. Read more

Moon snails use stealth in the sand to stalk prey

• By Susan Scott
• Jan. 28, 2017

I love moon snail shells. They’re marble smooth, patterned in rays of soft colors, and their whirls are classic. But just because the creatures’ homes look inviting doesn’t mean the animals that built them are. Moon snails are a nightmare on clam street. Read more

Ugly bottom dweller has its charms, slime and all

• By Susan Scott
• Jan. 21, 2017

Hagfish get no respect. And they should. The eel-shaped, bottom-dwelling creatures, averaging 20 inches long, provide humans with food, clothing, wallets, a crackerjack recycling system and snot. Not many fish are so giving. Read more

Attempt to aid crab heals faith in humanity

• By Susan Scott
• Jan. 14, 2017

One morning last week the news of hate crimes, science denial and war atrocities left me feeling hopeless about the human race. Wanting to block out the whole wretched world, I plugged my ears with headphones, pulled a hat down to my eyes and walked to the beach. Read more

Peace, hope graced city on wings of white, gold

• By Susan Scott
• Dec. 31, 2016

Most of my email this year was for the birds, specifically Pacific golden plovers (kolea) and white terns (manu-o-Ku), the native species that choose to grace our city. Read more

Sea turtles are wonders to witness everywhere

• By Susan Scott
• Dec. 24, 2016

This year I’ve already had the best Christmas present ever: a boost in appreciation of living on Oahu. Read more

New book chronicles decades of kolea studies

• By Susan Scott
• Dec. 17, 2016

In the mid-1990s I wrote a column about the Pacific golden plover, Oahu’s favorite shorebird, known here as kolea. Read more

Tahitian prawns gain foothold in local waters

• By Susan Scott
• Dec. 10, 2016

I had the pleasure of spending the long Thanksgiving weekend on Molokai with friends. After exploring that island’s remarkable beaches, we signed up with a local family for a guided hike up Halawa Valley to its waterfalls. Read more

Some reef encounters captured in blink of eye

• By Susan Scott
• Nov. 26, 2016

One of the pleasures of being home after an adventure is sorting photos of the trip. But as I go through pictures of my recent sailing trip in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, I’m also enjoying the images my mind took when it was too dark or too distant to shoot, or when I didn’t feel like looking at something marvelous through a lens. Read more

Mesmerizing sea ‘squash’ part of reef mod squad

• By Susan Scott
• Nov. 19, 2016

While anchored off this small, round, wooded islet, Craig and I started snorkeling on its leeward coral side and later emerged to walk the sand beach on its windward rocky side. As time passed, the tide rose so high we had to abandon the beach walk and swim over the rock bottom. Read more

Expedition to spot shark encounters spotty shark

• By Susan Scott
• Nov. 12, 2016

To mark exceptional snorkeling spots, the cruising guide for this area shows happy faces wearing mask and snorkel. Tiny Ravens Cove gets three. Read more

Help wedgies by turning lights off near shorelines

• By Susan Scott
• Nov. 5, 2016

Honu is still inside the Great Barrier Reef, but because we’re on the move and near neither reef, islands nor mainland, the sailing feels a bit like Hawaii. Except we miss the wedgies. Read more

Corals’ outer beauty belies fierce battles over territory

• By Susan Scott
• Oct. 29, 2016

Among these famous islands, fish of every color, shape and size swim among corals of every color, shape and size. Read more

Australians have learned to coexist with crocodiles

• By Susan Scott
• Oct. 15, 2016

We arrived in the Townsville marina to find a notice from the Queensland government. On the gate of Honu’s pier, a sign read, “WARNING! ACHTUNG! Recent crocodile sighting in this area. Read more

Heading Down Under again, this time like the bird flies

• By Susan Scott
• Oct. 8, 2016

As you read this, Craig and I are on our way to Australia once again to explore the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park on our sailboat, Honu. Read more

Opae ula are hardy critters, but treat them with respect

• By Susan Scott
• Oct. 1, 2016

If you dig it, they will come. Not the ghosts of baseball past, but equally enchanting, the shrimp of Hawaii present: opae ula. Read more

Oahu hui works to protect urban-dwelling white terns

• By Susan Scott
• Sept. 24, 2016

If you love the white terns that flit around our trees and add joy to our city, join the club. Really. There is a club. Read more

Man-of-wars are 1 animal, not a mishmash of critters

• By Susan Scott
• Sept. 17, 2016

At the beach, I recently ran into my neighbor, Marya, who, as usual, had a thoughtful marine animal question. She wondered how it is that a Portuguese man-of-war is a colony of individuals rather than one animal. Read more

White birds ‘having a blast’ likely honeymooning terns

• By Susan Scott
• Sept. 10, 2016

Nuuanu resident Robert emailed, “For the last few years we have been blessed by beautiful white birds cavorting in the sky, swooping all over our valley at great speed. Read more