Forest bird species dwindling in Maui Nui after several go extinct
Wildlife officials declare 8 bird species and one native plant extinct
Just seven forest bird species may be left in Maui Nui after a large percentage landed on a federal agency’s possible extinction list this week.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to remove 23 species, including nine from Hawaii, from the Federal Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants due to extensive data indicating extinction, including very low population numbers and high vulnerability.
“It’s tremendously sad, it’s actually hard to be a biologist working with it, especially if it’s actually something you’ve seen before and knowing that it’s not out there anymore,” said Fern Duvall, program manager of the Maui Nui Seabird Recovery Project. “We’re talking about losing a lot of our native forest birds, we’re talking about a big percent that won’t be there anymore.”
Among the bird species in Hawaii declared extinct include the Kauai akialoa, Kauai nukupu‘u, Kauai ‘o‘o (honeyeater), large Kauai thrush (kama), Maui ‘akepa, Maui nukupu‘u, Molokai creeper (kakawahie) and po‘ouli (honeycreeper).
A plant endemic to Hawaii called phyllostegia glabra var. lanaiensis — which is part of the mint family and was last seen on Lanai in 1914 — is also on the list.
Watching these birds’ unique behaviors and hearing their calls in the wild are no longer possible, and have not been possible for a while, said Duvall, also a wildlife biologist for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Forest and Wildlife.
“I’m lucky enough to have seen (po‘ouli) once and I was out there a lot trying to see it, but I saw one, once, but nobody can go do that anymore,” he said on Thursday night. “They have to go to Bishop Museums and look at a stuffed skin . . . How can a bird like that just be gone?”
The proposal by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is based on a review
of the “best available scientific and commercial information,” which indicates that these species are no longer detectable, meaning they no longer meet the definition of an endangered species.
The announcement triggers a 60-day public comment period before the species’ status becomes final.
The World Conservation Union’s policy operates under a 50-year rule, meaning that an animal could be labeled as extinct only if it had not been seen through active efforts for evidence in more than 50 years.
The Maui ‘akepa were last seen in 1988 and heard in 1995 from Kipahulu Valley; a Maui nukupu‘u was last sighted in 1996 on the slopes of Haleakala in Hanawi Natural Area Reserve; and the last three po‘ouli, from East Maui, died in captivity in 2004.
“It would only be through really difficult and challenging fieldwork to find out if a bird is not there, and that’s why some of the species are on that list,” Duvall said. “These birds won’t just reappear, these plants won’t just reappear.”
Experts have cited many factors contributing to these animals’ extinction, including climate change, which has brought severe drought to Maui County, floods, wildfires and temperature swings, as well as increased development and human contact, and invasive species competition.
Mosquitoes are another major issue for Maui Nui’s native forest birds due to the parasites they bring, and at higher and higher elevations as the temperatures warm up, Duvall said.
However, there are hopeful and successful comeback stories out there, he added, noting how there were only about 30 nene in 1950 and now there are thousands and counting through protection and management efforts.
Organizations across the Valley Isle, like the Maui Nui Seabird Project or the Maui Forest Recovery Bird project and other experts in the field, continue to manage and assess endangered species populations.
Looking ahead at preserving the remaining the native forest birds in Maui Nui, Duvall said that the “best thing people can do at this time” is to support the Birds, not Mosquitoes project, which aims to save these species from extinction by avian malaria.
“If we could get rid of the mosquitoes, the birds could actually flourish and they could move back downslope,” said Duvall. “There’s a lot of need for the public to be aware that what the state is trying to do is get permission to release sterile mosquitoes from breeding and therefore, transmitting avian disease.”
The community can also get involved by stopping by a local nursery and picking up native plants and trees, like ‘ohi‘a, and planting them in the appropriate locations so that birds “will have a habit to come back to,” he said.
“Plant natives, get rid of the mosquitoes — those are crucial things that you can do right for Maui,” he said.