- Wahi Grosbeak
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Wahi Grosbeak Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Passeriformes Family: Fringillidae Subfamily: Drepanididae Tribe: Psittirostrini Genus: Chloridops Species: C. wahi Binomial name Chloridops wahi Synonyms Oʻahu Grosbeak
The Wahi Grosbeak or Oʻahu Grosbeak (Chloridops wahi) is a prehistoric species of finch in the Hawaiian honeycreeper subfamily, Drepanididae. Chloridops wahi was endemic to dry forests on the Hawaiian islands of Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, and Maui. Based on the thickness of its bill it fed on seeds easier to crack than those of the naio (Myoporum sandwicense), on which the Kona Grosbeak fed. The species was already extinct when Europeans landed on the island. Being only known from fossils, its behavior and the exact reasons for its extinction are essentially unknown.[1] Its fossils have been found throughout the islands, but were present in higher concentrations in caves. The bird was smaller than the related King Kong Grosbeak (C. regiskongi) by 2 inches (5.1 cm). It had a total length of 9 inches (23 cm).
References
- ^ Pratt, H Douglas (2002). The Hawaiian Honeycreepers. Oxford University Press. p. 212. ISBN 9780198546535. http://books.google.com/books?id=h8cdPD-YsosC.
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