#alala

Day 8 of Avian August 2025, Birds of Hawaii, hosted by @cookiedoves: ʻAlalā or Hawaiian Crow (Corvus hawaiiensis)

The ʻAlalā is the only crow species native to Hawaii. Sadly, they were declared extinct in the wild in 2002, but conservationists have been breeding them in captivity and reintroducing them to native Hawaiian forests since 2016.

One of the more clever birds out there, the Hawaiian crow — like its cousin, the New Caledonian crow — has been observed using tools (sticks) to extract bugs from crevices. They can solve puzzles, remember human faces, and form complex social bonds. In captivity, they even teach problem-solving skills to younger birds. They also produce over 30 distinct calls, ranging from alarm calls that alert others to danger, to vocalizations that function like names for individuals.

Reintroduction to the wild can be risky for the birds. In captivity, they are trained to recognize hawk vocalizations in preparation for life in the forest — though hawks are just one danger. Like most native birds on the islands, their greatest threats are mammals (such as cats and mongooses) introduced by humans.

Strong and ferocious as Hermione/Nicostratus is thanks to Ares's blessing and shifting of form, facing up against warriors that have trained since childhood is no easy task...

(Also, memories of Helen’s face, so famed for its beauty, are but hazy memories now for her child…)

Per Hermione’s thoughts on her genderbending experience, I feel like she honestly isn’t thinking about it to hard at first. Becoming Nicostratus is what needs to be done to join the Achaean army and get into Troy and to Helen. His body is a tool to accomplish that goal. As far as he’s thought about it at all, after the war is over Nicostratus fully expects to return to being Hermione again, and she’s fine with that.

It’s only when truly confronted with the disparity of how the women in the Achean camp are treated (compared with Hermione’s experience as a sheltered princess), and how much more freedom and power Nicostratus has in comparison, that doubts about that particular future begin to come up. But also, her/his one main focus is on Helen, even as the motivation for finding her begins to warp as more and more information comes to light.

As for Ares though, I feel like he first is intrigued by the fire of the young Spartan princess, even as he aids the Trojan side. He’s willing to give her a fighting chance out of pure interest, and so changes her form to be accepted in the Achaean army. As Nicostratus begins to prove himself in battle and grow in strength, always remembering to provide gratitude to his patron god afterwards,( despite risking the anger of anyAchaean soldiers who resent Ares currently opposing them) so too does Ares pride in his new protege.

Eventually, (and especially after he loses his son Ascalaphus and decides he wants to switch sides) Ares begins to see the young warrior as a son, and harbors dreams of Nicostratus becoming king of Sparta and declaring the warrior island as sacred to him, and him alone (you’d think they’d already be big into Ares but apparently Sparta was actually more focused on Apollo, wouldn’t have guessed it)

Doodle of that hypothetical future where Hermione does decide to become King Nicostratus of Sparta:

ʻAlalā (Hawaiian Crow) #avianaugust day 8.

this is my eridna godtier headcanon or somehing

Prompt 7 of #AvianAugust2025 hosted by @cookiedoves is the ʻAlalā (Hawaiian Crow) #AvianAugust is a bird art challenge which this year celebrates the birds of Hawaii