Hemignathus
Encyclopedia
Hemignathus is a Hawaiian honeycreeper
genus
in the finch
family
, Fringillidae. These birds are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands
.
Many of its species
became extinct
during the 19th and 20th centuries due to a combination of habitat destruction
, introduced predators, and most importantly mosquito
-borne diseases. Some others became extinct in prehistoric times, when Polynesian
settlers deforested
the lowlands for agriculture
.
They have a wide variety of bill shapes and sized; if the genus is broadly defined this diversity is probably the largest of all bird genera living or extinct.
(Sub)Genus Hemignathus sensu stricto - pointed or long and downcurved bills, insectivore
s or nectarivore
s. Oʻahu ʻAmakihi, Hemignathus flavus or Hemignathus chloris
Kauaʻi ʻAmakihi, Hemignathus kauaiensis
Greater ʻAmakihi, Hemignathus sagittirostris - extinct
(1901) Giant Nukupu‘u, Hemignathus vorpalis - prehistoric
Nukupuʻu, Hemignathus lucidus - probably extinct (late 1990s?)
Oʻahu Nukupuʻu Hemignathus (lucidus) lucides - extinct (1837)
Kauaʻi Nukupuʻu Hemignathus (lucidus) hanapepe - probably extinct (late 1990s?)
(Sub)Genus Magumma - slim pointed bill, insectivore
(Sub)Genus Akialoa - long and downcurved bills, primarily nectarivores Greater ʻAkialoa, Hemignathus ellisianus or Akialoa ellisianus - extinct (1969)
Maui Nui ʻAkialoa or Lanaʻi ʻAkialoa, Hemignathus (ellisianus) lanaiensis or Akialoa (ellisiana) lanaiensis - extinct (1892)
Kauaʻi ʻAkialoa, Hemignathus (ellisianus) stejnegeri or Akialoa (ellisiana) stejnegeri - extinct (1969)
Hoopoe-billed ʻAkialoa, Hemignathus upupirostris or Akialoa upupirostris - prehistoric
Giant ʻAkialoa, Hemignathus sp. or Akialoa sp. - prehistoric
(Sub)Genus Heterorhynchus - long and downcurved upper and short and stout lower bill, probes for insects
Hawaiian honeycreeper
Hawaiian honeycreepers are small, passerine birds endemic to Hawaii. Some authorities still categorize this group as a family Drepanididae, but in recent years, most authorities consider them a subfamily, Drepanidinae, of Fringillidae, the finch family...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
in the finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, Fringillidae. These birds are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
.
Many of its species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
became extinct
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
during the 19th and 20th centuries due to a combination of habitat destruction
Habitat destruction
Habitat destruction is the process in which natural habitat is rendered functionally unable to support the species present. In this process, the organisms that previously used the site are displaced or destroyed, reducing biodiversity. Habitat destruction by human activity mainly for the purpose of...
, introduced predators, and most importantly mosquito
Mosquito
Mosquitoes are members of a family of nematocerid flies: the Culicidae . The word Mosquito is from the Spanish and Portuguese for little fly...
-borne diseases. Some others became extinct in prehistoric times, when Polynesian
Polynesians
The Polynesian peoples is a grouping of various ethnic groups that speak Polynesian languages, a branch of the Oceanic languages within the Austronesian languages, and inhabit Polynesia. They number approximately 1,500,000 people...
settlers deforested
Deforestation
Deforestation is the removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a nonforest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use....
the lowlands for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
.
They have a wide variety of bill shapes and sized; if the genus is broadly defined this diversity is probably the largest of all bird genera living or extinct.
Systematics
The genus Hemignathus is sometimes split into four distinct genera. While it is probably desirable to move at least some species to their own genera, many authorities are reluctant to do so at present due to the lack of comprehensive studies. That half of the taxa are extinct does not make such studies easier.(Sub)Genus Hemignathus sensu stricto - pointed or long and downcurved bills, insectivore
Insectivore
An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....
s or nectarivore
Nectarivore
In zoology, nectarivore is an animal which eats the sugar-rich nectar produced by flowering plants. Most nectarivores are insects or birds, but there are also nectarivorous mammals, notably several species of bats in the Southwestern United States and Mexico, as well as the Australian Honey Possum...
s.
- Common ʻAmakihi or Hawaiʻi ʻAmakihi,
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
(1901)
Late Quaternary prehistoric birds
Prehistoric birds are various taxa of birds that became extinct before recorded history, or more precisely, before they could be studied alive by bird scientists...
- Maui Nukupuʻu
(Sub)Genus Magumma - slim pointed bill, insectivore
- [[ʻAnianiau]], Hemignathus parvus or Magumma parva
(Sub)Genus Akialoa - long and downcurved bills, primarily nectarivores
- Lesser ʻAkialoa or Hawai'i 'Akialoa,
- Oʻahu ʻAkialoa
Late Quaternary prehistoric birds
Prehistoric birds are various taxa of birds that became extinct before recorded history, or more precisely, before they could be studied alive by bird scientists...
Late Quaternary prehistoric birds
Prehistoric birds are various taxa of birds that became extinct before recorded history, or more precisely, before they could be studied alive by bird scientists...
(Sub)Genus Heterorhynchus - long and downcurved upper and short and stout lower bill, probes for insects
- [[ʻAkiapolaʻau]], Hemignathus munroi or Heterorhynchus wilsoni