Yes, we know, it's been a while. We will - really! - write about how it is to get back on shore. But not right now, this is about birds. I finally did the data entry and spreadsheet work to figure out the bird list from the trip. It took me a long time to psych myself up to this since I hate Excel with a purple passion. But it is done, and I can mail the list to anyone who wants it - send an email or post a request with yours. I was surprised by how many of the birds we saw were new: we got 201 species, of which 195 were "lifers". Cool!

My personal favorites: the fairy tern, just because it's so pretty and is so much the spirit of the islands. The kiwis, of course, for obvious reasons. Just so dang goofy! Albatrosses are incredibly impressive on the wing. The most unusual sighting was probably the short-tailed albatross, seen on the way back to Rarotonga. It's a North Pacific species, and I saw it about 25 degrees south. I doubt I could get anyone to believe me, but I saw it well.

The sad news from the trip is how many of these birds are on the endangered species list. I haven't counted it up exactly, but probably more than 20 get that dubious distinction. And habitat loss will be a big problem as the islands start to go under as the seas rise. Good luck and godspeed to the gang in Copenhagen!