Chochaio Bird

Collected by Father Raymund from the people of Palau. Reconstructed by Mark Sherman. The full title of this string figure is "A chochaío (bird) from the house of Augeloi, with a plucked-apart tail and rumpled feathers."

<Full-length video in Windows Media Player>

Step-by-Step Video Clips

Written Instructions

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 all

Step 7 - Caroline Extension (2 picks up lower 1f close to 1; as 2 returns, 1 presses against the side of 2 to trap the string they share; 3, 4 and 5 fold down over 5f and depress it so that the upper and lower frame lines are widely separated).

You have the Palauan bird known as Chochaio.

According to Raymund's informant the strings in the upper half of the design represent the wings of the bird in flight. The strings in the lower half represent his tail.

It's not clear if Chochaio is a legendary or real bird. In Palauan, Chochaio is also the name given to the "Spotted Eagle Sting Ray" (Aetobatus narinari).