The stately ʻaukuʻu is found near ponds, streams, marshes and shorelines where it hunts for shellfish, fish, frogs, mice, insects, and even other birds. Standing about 2-feet tall, they are gray with a black bill, head, and back and yellow legs and feet with piercing red eyes. When breeding, they have long white feathers streaming from the top of their heads. You’ll see them most often at dawn and dusk, standing like a statue ready to strike their prey, or eerily swooping overhead into the dark.

The map below shows hotspots along our birding trails where you might see this bird. Learn more by visiting our species profile page for ʻaukuʻu.