Native Birds

Special thanks to the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for use of their recordings in today's Manu Minute.

The Pueo, or Asio flammeus sandwichensis, is one of ten subspecies of the short-eared owl. With the exception of Australia and Antartica, the short-eared owl can be found on every continent and many Pacific islands. Collectively, it has one of the most extensive ranges in the avian world.

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The 'ōma'o  is one of two remaining thrush species in the Hawaiian Islands. The other is the puaiohi, a critically endangered species found only on Kaua'i.

'Ōma'o enjoy a diet of fruits and berries, as well as the occasional arthropod. They play a critical role in the seed dispersal of native plants, such as the 'ōhelo 'ai and 'ōlapa.

The 'ua'u belongs to the expansive Procellariidae family, which encompasses over 50 species of petrels. These seabirds can be found across all of the world's oceans and nearly all of its seas.

Like its seafaring cousins, our Hawaiian petrel spends nearly all of its time on the open water. But between March and November, 'ua'u will return to the highest peaks on the Hawaiian islands, such as Haleakalā on Maui, in order to breed and raise their fledglings.

With over 850,000 individual birds on Hawai'i island, the 'amakihi are among our most common honeycreeper species. Still, a sighting of this yellow singer is a treat for any birdwatcher.

A Kauaʻi organization is asking for public support to help save endangered native bird species on the island.

Climate change is affecting the food supply of Hawaiʻi's native and non-native bird species.

Natives are recolonizing urban Honolulu. Native birds, that is. The white tern or Manu O Kū is thriving in Hawaiʻi’s most populous city, and so is its fan base – the Hui Manu O Kū. HPR reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi joined a group of white tern enthusiasts on a bird expedition in downtown Honolulu.

The Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park has completed work on a 5 mile fence to protect native birds from feral animals, especially cats.  Around 75 pairs of the endangered Hawaiian petrel live on Hawai‘i Island… and make their nests in lava rock burrows.  Parents take turns incubating a single egg, and sometimes forage for food in very distant places.  Jessica Ferracane is the Public Affairs Officer for Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

A national environmental group is worried that bright lights at a Kaua‘i military base are harming the island’s native seabirds. The Center for Biological Diversity is seeking legal action after more than 120 endangered shearwaters and petrels were harmed or killed by artificial light at Kōke‘e Air Force Base over a two-week period last year. 

The Newell’s shearwater spends most of the day burrowed in the mountains of Kaua‘i. It’s not until the sun goes down that the endangered seabirds take flight. Shrouded in darkness, it’s hard to see them. But you can definitely hear them.

The Palila bird is a small, unassuming bird with a magnificent golden crown and breast.  Despite it's modest size, it is royalty among native species and an icon for bird conservation in the Hawaiian Islands.

Christopher Phillips explains...

nce described as the most common native land bird to be found on the island, the Oʻahu ʻelepaio has now become an endangered species. Through the Endangered Species Act, five areas of critical habitat have been designated for the bird.

Christopher Phillips explains...

The breeding cycle of the Hawaiian Hawk leaves it vulnerable to the decline that is faced by raptors the world over. The Io is now the subject of intense study by conservationists seeking to better understand the bird itself, its breeding habits, survival, and populations.

Christopher Phillips explains...

What happens when two species humans are acting to preserve clash head on? This is the case with the Alala, the Hawaiian Crow, and the Io, the Hawaiian Hawk.

Christopher Phillips explains...

The Pueo, sometimes called the Hawaiian owl, are an endangered species on Oʻahu, where they are threatened by ground-based predators and urban development, including light pollution. The Hakalau Forest on the windward slope of Mauna Kea provides a safe habitat for the Pueo to make a comeback.

Christopher Phillips explains...

The ʻiʻiwi is one of the most remarkable examples of evolutionary adaptation in the Hawaiian islands. Once found in abundance on each of the isalnds, it is now extinct on Lanaʻi and facing hardship on Oʻahu and Molokaʻi.

Christopher Phillips explains...