About 105 miles northwest of Oahu lies the fourth largest of the Hawaiian islands: Kauai. Nicknamed the “Garden Island” due to its abundance of lush natural beauty, Kauai is home to over 70,000 people. However, aside from its human inhabitants, Kauai is also home to a massive population of what has become one of the island’s trademark features: feral chickens. Yes, as any anybody from Kauai could tell you, wild chickens are running around all over the place on the island. Why are there so many chickens on Kauai? Where did Kauai’s wild chickens come from? Are Kauai’s chickens any different from the typical barnyard varieties? How do the chickens affect the daily lives of people on Kauai? And what can genetic testing teach us about the origins of Kauai’s feral chickens? We answer all these questions and more on this episode of Transmissions from Hawaii.