Oʻahu ʻakialoa

Oʻahu ʻakialoa

Oʻahu ʻAkialoa

Names 

  • Common Name: Oʻahu ʻakialoa 
  • Scientific: Akialoa ellisiana 

Song 

No available recordings.

Conservation Status 

Extinct. Last confirmed sighting in 1892, though there are subsequent unconfirmed sightings described in Pyle & Pyle 2017.

Species Information 

The Oʻahu ʻakialoa is thought to have been more similar to the lesser ʻakialoa than those species found on Maui and Kauai (Olson 1995). Their long beak enabled them to eat bugs and the nectar of native flowers such as those from ʻōhiʻa trees. They were similar to ‘amakihi, but with larger bills.

Distribution 

O’ahu. Specimens were collected in Nuʻuanu Valley.

Habitat 

This honeycreeper could be found in high elevation forests. 

Threats 

Oʻahu ‘akialoa likely were susceptible to the same factors that threaten other native Hawaiian forest birds, including loss and degradation of habitat, predation by introduced mammals, and disease.

Photos  

Oʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop MuseumOʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum
Oʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop MuseumOʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum
Oʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop MuseumOʻahu ʻakialoa. Jeremy Snell, courtesy of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum

Additional Resources 

Citation: Pyle, R.L., and P. Pyle. 2017. The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands: Occurrence, History, Distribution, and Status. B.P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI, U.S.A. Version 2 (1 January 2017) http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/birds/rlp-monograph

Atkinson, C. T., & LaPointe, D. A. (2009). Introduced Avian Diseases, Climate Change, and the Future of Hawaiian Honeycreepers. Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery, 23(1), 53–63. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27670709 

Olson, S. L., & James, H. F. (1995). Nomenclature of the Hawaiian akialoas and nukupuus (Aves: Drepanidini). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 

Pratt, H. D. (2014). A consensus taxonomy for the Hawaiian honeycreepers. Occasional Papers of the Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, 85(1)

Pratt, H. D. 2005. The Hawaiian honeycreepers: Drepanidinae. Bird Families of the World. Oxford, Oxford University Press.