‘Akepa: End of an Era (But What a Life!)
Posted at 11:32 am July 9, 2009 by Richard Switzer
June 29, 2009, was a sad day for the staff of the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program: the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center (KBCC) experienced the death of the last remaining Hawaii ‘akepa Loxops coccineus in our care. (There are still ‘akepa in the wild.)
Although this marks the end of an era, it gave the program staff a chance to reflect on the remarkable life of this wonderful little bird. Affectionately known as “Studbook #3,” he hatched in May 1999 from an egg collected from the wild—one of the first potential founders of the captive ‘akepa flock. This means that he was just over 10 years old at the time of his death. Not bad for a little guy typically weighing in at 10.2 grams or 0.36 ounces. (When you weigh only 10 grams, those extra 0.2 grams count for a lot!) But this is relatively heavy compared to an ‘akepa chick, which weighs less than 1 gram (0.03 ounces) at hatch—one of the smallest passerine species to have been raised artificially from the egg, and quite a challenge for our team of hand-rearers (see post, A Small but Mighty Akepa).
Although Hawaii ‘akepa are not one of Hawaii’s most critically endangered bird species, having the ‘akepa flock in managed care has enabled us to develop and refine techniques that we hope to use in the recovery of their more endangered relatives within the subfamily of Hawaiian honeycreepers. The remainder of the managed-care ‘akepa flock were eventually released in 2007, in an initial attempt to reestablish a wild population in a restored patch of forest on the Big Island known as Kipuka 21 (see post, Kipuka 21: A New Home for Our Creeper and ‘Akepa). However, due to an accident in his aviary as a fledgling, which resulted in a major part of one of his legs being amputated, #3 was considered not fully equipped to lead a healthy life in the wild. Instead, he was destined for our education aviary.
It was amazing to see how he thrived in the captive environment on only one leg. “Thrived” is perhaps an understatement, because he was well known to crowds of school children visiting KBCC for his dazzling acrobatics, whether he was hanging upside-down from the roof of his aviary, or a flash of orange feathers hot on the pursuit of fruit flies and moths, only to elegantly alight on a perch with perfect balance on his one good leg (scoring 10 points from the Russian judge).
But ‘Akepa #3 is not the only bird that we believe has set a managed care longevity record for its species. Puaiohi #5, better known as Green Mama, is still going strong at the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC) despite veterinary issues, having hatched in 1996. Puaiohi #9 is only a year behind her and is still siring offspring this season at the age of 12. Not to be outdone, Palila #11 has been laying fertile eggs at the grand old age of 13, while 12-year-old Maui Parrotbill #1 continues to chase females less than half his age.
It is not unusual for tropical bird species to lead long lives, since they do not experience the extreme challenges that the seasons bring for birds in temperate climes. Very often their annual reproductive rate is low, too—the antithesis of “Live fast, die young.” Furthermore, with a consistent, healthy food supply and veterinary care, birds in managed care frequently have the ability to outlive their wild counterparts. Of course, these smaller passerines cannot compete with the larger species, such as corvids, which are renowned for their longevity. Consequently, the Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program honors undoubtedly goes to Kalani, ‘alala studbook #27. At the ripe old age of 28, Kalani is the old man of the program. Although time has certainly mellowed him, he is reputed to be a grumpy old man, at that.
Richard Switzer is the Conservation Program Manager for the Institute for Conservation Research’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.
Read Richard’s previous post, Naming ‘Alala Chicks.
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July 16th, 2009 at 11:06 am
I’m sorry about the loss of Studbook #3. It sounds like he had a wonderful personality and spirit to go with his lively and lovely appearance. Thanks for sharing his story along with descriptions of other birds in your program. As I find out more and more about birds from this blog, my enjoyment of the birds at my local zoo has been greatly enhanced. In this case, familiarity definitely does NOT breed contempt but instead fosters a greater appreciation. Thanks for that, as well!
July 16th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Hi Melissa.
Thanks for your delightful message. That certainly seems to be one of the wonderful things about birds – the more you gain an insight into their private lives and behaviors, the more you gain an appreciation for them… and the more they continue to amaze you. Enjoy!
July 26th, 2009 at 8:01 am
Having been an intern back in 2006, I definitely remember Studbook #3, and he was one of my favorites among the forest bird population at the KBCC. Although, I referred to him often as the “one-legged guy.” I remember installing some perching in the education aviary and he came over and hung from the ceiling a few times, curiously watching what I was doing. He was also the first to land on the corner perch I had put in. I’m a little sad to hear that he has passed on, but I’m also glad he was able to live such a long and healthy life despite only having one leg!