Before the first Polynesian settlers arrived roughly 1,500 years ago, the Hawaiian Islands were ruled from the sky. Not a single land-dwelling reptile or mammal called the archipelago home – just winged insects, one variety of bat, and a truly vast array of birds. While Hawaii is still flush with life today, many of those […]
Tag: Hawaiian honeycreeper
Trump administration sabotages major conservation effort, defying Congress
Scientists and officials around the US have told the Guardian that the Trump administration has withdrawn funding for a large, successful conservation program – in direct contradiction of instructions from Congress. Unique in scale and ambition, the program comprises 22 research centers that tackle big-picture issues affecting huge swaths of the US, such as climate […]
10 amazing birds that have gone extinct
BirdLife is proud to announce that Volume 2 of the Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World is now available to purchase. Published by Lynx Edicions in association with HBW and BirdLife International, Volume 2 chronicles the world’s passerines (perching birds), and completes the most exhaustive illustrated checklist of birds ever compiled, with stunning, […]
Hawaiian honeycreeper birds at risk of extinction from avian malaria
In the rugged mountain forests of Kaua’i, colorful birds called honeycreepers are dying out. Usually protected by the cooler temperatures found at higher altitudes, the birds are now victims of malaria-carrying mosquitoes that have crept upward as temperatures rise. Honeycreeper populations declined an average of 68 percent in the core of their preferred range on […]