The Po‘ouli is a stocky Hawaiian honeycreeper endemic to Maui that was
not discovered until 1973. Po‘ouli have short wings and tail, a finch-like bill
and distinctive plumage.
Aptly named “black-faced” in Hawaiian, Po‘ouli have a large black face
mask, white cheeks, throat and underparts and brown wings and back; no other
Hawaiian forest bird is similarly colored.
It has been listed as Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct) and
probably holds the distinction of being the most endangered bird in the world.
In 1980, the Poʻouli population was estimated at 140 birds. Last seen
in 2003 and 2004, there are only two known individuals: one male and one
female.
The two remaining birds are at least seven years old and are nearing
the end of their reproductive lifespan; unfortunately, they had differing home
ranges.
The exact causes of Poʻouli’s rapid population decline, since the
species' discovery in 1973, are not well understood.
The Po‘ouli is likely susceptible to the same factors that threaten
other native Hawaiian forest birds, including: loss and degradation of habitat,
predation by introduced mammals (including cats, rats and mongoose) and
disease.
The remaining Poʻouli individuals were found in windswept,
high-elevation rainforest on the northeast slope of Haleakala Volcano.
I remember a helicopter trip flying over this region on our way to
Waikamoi with folks from The Nature Conservancy; we knew that people were on
the ground trying to capture the, then, three remaining Poʻouli.
Crews were attempting to catch the elusive birds to attempt to breed
them in captivity; since it appeared natural breeding was not occurring.
I vividly remember a meeting of the Board of Land and Natural
Resources, in September 2004. In the middle of the meeting, my secretary came
into the room and approached me.
She knew that I frowned upon interruptions of Land Board meetings, but
she also knew of my interest and concern about the Po‘ouli. She handed me a
note and shared the great news, which I then shared with the rest of the people
at the Land Board meeting.
Members of the Maui Forest Bird Conservation Center captured one of the
only three remaining Po‘ouli birds that had been known to exist.
In the following days, the flurry of e-mails for days after this was
phenomenal; the excitement, anticipation and hope that each shared in the
prospect of saving a species. This was an exciting time to be at DLNR.
However, scientists’ efforts for captive breeding were crushed when the
female bird died of malaria in November 2004 and no further sightings have been
made of the two known remaining birds in the forest. (However, scientists
successfully took tissue samples for possible future cloning.)
I want to make sure people realize and appreciate the magnitude of this
story. We are talking about the possible end of a species. Someone, a few short
years ago, had in his hands potentially the last bird of its species.
Sad as this story ends, it is an example of the kind of stuff that
happens in resource management, especially in a place like Hawaiʻi where there
are so many plants and animals that are endangered.
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