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National Park of American SamoaOfu Beach at the Ofu unit of the park.
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National Park of American Samoa
Birds
 
Collared Kingfisher
An NPS Photo by Bryan Harry.
Collared kingfisher at the Pola Island overlook.
 

A first impression may be that Samoa is not particularly rich in bird life. No gulls follow ships or congregate at the harbor. The town birds seem limited to mostly new introductions from Asia--bulbuls and mynas. But more careful observation reveals a very rich bird life--sea birds (terns, boobies, frigatebirds, petrels and shearwaters) touching land here to breed; interesting migrant shorebirds (even bristle-thighed curlews from Alaska) winter during Samoa's summer; and a nearly intact native rainforest avifauna has residents. The forest birds include honeyeaters, and tropical doves and pigeons. Interesting specialties are the easily seen cardinal and wattled honeyeaters, and Samoan starling. Wary (Samoans savor them) are the Pacific pigeons, ground doves and two species of fruit dove.

View a checklist of the birds of the park (partially illustrated).

The Natural History Guide to the Park also has a checklist of birds of the park.  View the list of birds

noddy tern
Natural History Guide to the Park
The on-line version of our latest book
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Frigatebird
Checklist
Birds of the park.
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Samoan fruit bats hanging at rest  

Did You Know?
Throughout the Pacific the main reason for the rarity of the two fruit bat species, or flying foxes, is that it is widely sought as a food and considered a delicacy. Sale or trade in fruit bats is now illegal in the U.S. and its territories.

Last Updated: November 19, 2009 at 19:45 EST