Kona Grosbeak (Chloridops kona)
Posted on 31 December, 1894 in Extinct
Year Last Seen:
1894
Comments:
This species was known from the Hawaiian island of Lana'i, USA, but it has not been recorded since 1894 and is now Extinct. Logging of its forest habitat coupled with the impacts of introduced predators is likely to have caused the loss of this species.
Habitat:
It inhabited naio forest on lava flows at 1,000-1,800 m, and fed on seeds (P.C. Banko and W.E. Banko 2009).
Causes:
Reasons for its extinction are unknown (Grant 1995) though habitat destruction, introduced mammalian predators and avian malaria are likely to have been responsible.
Distribution:
Chloridops kona was endemic to Hawaii, <strong>USA</strong> (Stattersfield <em>et al</em>. 1998). The species was already very rare when discovered, being restricted to only about four square miles, and was last collected in 1894<strong> </strong>(Greenway 1967). The genus is known from fossils from Kauai, O`ahu and Maui (James and Olson 1991).