Torry, catch a chicken!

Domestic chickens gone wild in Hawaii

Nobody will deny the allure of chickens.  Ubiquitous producers of eggs and meat, they are the most familiar of all farm animals.  Some are even pets.  Free-range chickens have the protection of the farmer and run of the limited range to forage as they like.  Hawaii, however, has taken the concept of free-range to a whole new level.

The Polynesians brought many plants and animals with them when they settled Hawaii around 1200 AD.  Among these was the Red Jungle Fowl. These birds are the stock our modern-day domestic chickens were derived from.  So, it's not surprising that, when Caucasians brought chickens to the islands much later, the birds interbred.

Part of the reason that the domestic birds escaped captivity is because of hurricanes that hit the islands in 1982 and 1992.  The resulting carnage facilitated the release of the fowl and the chickens interbred with already established native populations.  Although you can find these now-wild birds throughout all the Hawaiian islands, it is on the island of Kauai where they have especially proliferated.

It is currently estimated that there are nearly half a million wild chickens on Kauai.  There are more than six chickens for each human represented.  Their presence is both a blessing and a curse.  The birds help keep insect populations under control.  No one in Kauai can ever be accused of sleeping in.  Feral chickens are a source of eggs and meat for some, although the birds are apparently rather tough to eat and the increased risk of parasitism.  They leave their droppings everywhere. 

Love them or hate them, the birds are here to stay.  As a tourist, I found their presence amusing and somewhat endearing.  I didn't find the feral fowl foul at all.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com