From the Cage to the Aquarium: Meeting Guam’s Original Homeowners
 For our season finale, we decided to take a different approach to the “home” aspect of our show and instead of touring a residence, we toured the habitats of Guam’s native homeowners…our friends that have made the land and the ocean their home for hundreds of years before we showed up.
First, we visited the Department of Agriculture to check out the Guam Rail which is native to Guam; it’s a bird we can call our own and there’s no if’s and’s or but’s about it! Known locally as the koko bird, Wildlife Biologist Cheryl Calaustro says the entire Guam population of koko reside at the Department of Agriculture. “We have about 100 birds here at any give time, but it depends. We generally raise chicks for release on Rota or to send to the zoos on the mainland.” The brown tree snake is the major cause of the decline of the koko as well as the loss of habitat. I got a chance to hold a koko bird named Staples, who was quite friendly and took it upon himself to even find his way towards my head…this of course sent me in a frenzy, but I did my best to stay calm. There’s nothing like having a bird flap its wings all over your face! Cheryl explained that a testament to the koko’s long standing existence on Guam is their presence in our local legends. Meantime, their food sources consist of geckos and various types of little bugs. They actually have a guy whose job is to solely go out and catch geckos to feed the birds. An average koko can eat about three geckos a day. If you’re wondering how many birds are born in a clutch, Cheryl says about three to four, but most recently one of their hens gave birth to five! Another native homeowner, the Micronesian kingfisher…has to be one of the most beautiful birds I’ve seen on Guam because of its vibrant gold and blue feathers. Cheryl said that while the kingfisher can also be found among the other islands, Guam’s is the most colorful. With just a handful left on island, which are all kept in the facility, Cheryl says that the majority of these birds are in the states and managed by zoos. Next up, the Marianas Crow…which Cheryl says are often mistaken for the “Sali”.
Last on our list was the fanihi or fruit bat. “It’s the only mammal you would have originally found on Guam.” Currently there are less than 40 fanihi that can be found out in the wild on Guam….and while they do reproduce, they have a difficult time increasing their population because of the destruction of their natural habitat. But depending on where you live, if you’re lucky you may just end up seeing one. To get a sense of who’s been calling Guam’s waters “home” – we visited Underwater World. With so much to see and never enough time, our big finale wraps up with me taking a swim with the sharks, turtles and sting rays…but first, Curator Mike McCue stressed the importance of preserving the homes that our fish depend on, the corals. “Everything has a relationship whether you see it or not…from sharks all the way down, the shark has a relationship with the medium fish we eat, medium fish with small fish, and small fish with coral…without a link it’ll all fall apart.” So what can you do to help save the corals? A big part starts at home, by simply cutting back on your trash disposal. “You want to use as little plastic and as little marine debris as possible,” said McCue. Now it’s one thing to see these creatures that are the same size if not bigger than myself swimming from the tunnel – but jumping in with them was something else. After suiting up, we headed down towards the tank and I could already feel the anxiety building up. To make matters worse, I have absolutely zero experience with this type of equipment so then the whole thing just became hilarious to me. One big breath and then I jumped off the ledge. I’d have to say it was pretty incredible snorkeling in that aquarium and being surrounded by creatures kind enough to share their home with us, which is why we should take care of their home. But as amazing as it was, let me tell you…with every shark and sting ray that went by, I couldn’t help but imagine myself being that one person that gets attacked out of nowhere…as those thoughts ran through my mind, I quickly thanked my camera man john for suggesting I do this shoot. After a few laps around the tank, we called it a day and of course, I made it out just fine.
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“The Sali are smaller, these are crows which have full black long tails and a distinctive caw…you’ll find these in forests where people aren’t…unlike the Sali which enjoy being around people. They’re also dark and speckled.”
To the Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife division and the crew at Underwater World…thank you so much for taking the time to share these homes with us.
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