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Knemidokoptic mange was first observed on two Hawai‘i ‘Amakihi (Hemignathus virens) mist netted in Manuka Natural Area Reserve (NAR) on the Island of Hawai‘i in June 2007. Microscopic examination of skin scrapings from lesions of the infested individuals revealed the scaley-leg mite, Knemidokoptes jamaicensis. Continued surveillance at Manuka NAR (2007-2009) documented a 24% (15/63) prevalence of mange among Hawai‘i ‘Amakihi distributed from coastal habitat to 1,500 m above sea level (asl). From 2012-2014, we conducted an island-wide survey of wild passerine birds from several leeward sites (Manuka NAR, Kahuku Unit of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (HAVO), Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a Forest Bird Sanctuary, and Kipahoehoe NAR)...
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The indigenous forest birds of American Samoa are increasingly threatened by changing patterns of rainfall and temperature that are associated with climate change as well as environmental stressors associated with agricultural and urban development, invasive species, and new introductions of avian diseases and disease vectors. Long term changes in their distribution, diversity, and population sizes could have significant impacts on the ecological integrity of the islands because of their critical role as pollinators and seed dispersers. We documented diversity of vector borne parasites on Tutuila and Ta‘u Islands over a 10-year period to expand earlier observations of Plasmodium, Trypanosoma, and filarial parasites,...
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We examine altitudinal movements involving unusual use of caves by Hawaiian hoary bats, Lasiurus cinereus semotus, during winter and spring in the Mauna Loa Forest Reserve (MLFR), Hawai‘i Island. Acoustic detection of hoary bat vocalizations, were recorded with regularity outside 13 lava tube cave entrances situated between 2,200 to 3,600 m asl from November 2012 to April 2013. Vocalizations were most numerous in November and December with the number of call events and echolocation pulses decreasing through the following months. Bat activity was positively correlated with air temperature and negatively correlated with wind speed. Visual searches found no evidence of hibernacula nor do Hawaiian hoary bats appear...
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Hawai‘i has some of the most endangered avian species in the world, which face numerous threats from habitat loss, disease, climate change, and introduced species. This report details the results of a two-year productivity study of all forest bird species at Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge, Hawai‘i Island. We found and monitored nests from seven native species and three common non-native species of forest birds at three sites across the refuge. In addition to gathering important baseline information on productivity of forest birds, we examined differences in productivity between years, sites, and as a function of nest height. The weather differed greatly between the two years, with much more rain occurring in 2014....
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At least three variants of avian pox virus are present in Hawai’i - Fowlpox from domestic poultry and a group of genetically distinct viruses that cluster within two clades (Pox Variant 1 and Pox Variant 2) that are most similar to Canarypox based on DNA sequence of the virus 4b core protein gene. We tested whether Hawai’i ‘Amakihi can be protected from wild virus isolates with an attenuated live Canarypox vaccine that is closely related to isolates that cluster within clade 1 (Pox Variant 1) based on sequence of the attenuated Canarypox virus 4b core protein. Thirty-one (31) Hawai`i ‘Amakihi (Hemignathus virens) with no prior physical evidence of pox infection were collected on Mauna Kea from xeric, high elevation...
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