Cute until they are not

 

These are Nene the state bird of Hawaii. Online sources claim that the Nene was nearly extinct in the 1950s with a total population reaching about 30. Now, I can usually see that many in front of our condo. Like the chicken they seem to have no natural enemies. Does that make the Nene the apex predator. Resources claim some are taken by cats and the ferocious Mongoose, but I have not seen a Mongoose and Hawaiians seem more dog than cat people. Doesn't it always look like there are too many vowels at the end of Hawaiians. My spell checker says that is correct. These folks need more letters of the alphabet to work with. 

The NeNe is a distant relative of the Canadian Goose and looks the part. The sound and coloration are a bit different. These geese share one other characteristic with the  Canadians that come ashore at our lake cabin. They poop a lot. You must constantly remove your shoes and check so you don't bring anything into the house. There is a sign beside our front door that says "Mahalo for removing your shoes". I am used to doing this without a request, but maybe this is where that practice came from.