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Apapane in the Ohia Forests of Hawaii
Posted: December 19, 2007
‘Apapane are the most abundant and widely distributed of native forest birds of Hawaii today. They can only be found at elevations above 3,300 feet where mosquitoes carrying avian pox and malaria cannot reach. While Apapane can be found on 6 of the 8 largest Hawaiian Islands, they are most commonly seen in the ohia forests at Kokee on Kauai, on the forested slopes of Haleakala on Maui, and on Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, and Kilauea on the island of Hawaii.
Apapane (Himatione sanguinea) are about 5 inches long and are bright red in color with a white underbelly and black legs, wings and tail. Their vibrant red of their plumage matches the color of their principal food source – the nectar of lehua flowers. But Apapane are omnivorous and eat insects, spiders, and other tiny creatures. The Hawaiians captured Apapane to gather their red feathers for feathered capes, helmets, and leis.
When Apapane fly, their flapping wings make a distinctive whirring sound. As I hiked at the 4,600 foot level of The Nature Conservancy’s Kona Hema Preserve in South Kona, the whirring sound was an early warning signal for me to quickly photograph this trio of birds that rested momentarily before darting off again.
‘Apapane have a variety of distinctive songs and calls that vary depending on the habitat and island. One of the Apapane in this photo was blissfully singing on a lehua tree in full bloom when I took this photo at the 4,000 foot level at Kokee State Park on Kauai along the Pihea Trail along the rim of Kalalau Valley.
Apapane are but one of some 51 species in the Hawaiian Honeycreeper family endemic to the Hawaiian Islands which were once abundant in virtually all the forests. But due to degradation of habitat and mosquito-borne diseases such as pox and avian malaria, less than half the species survive today and they can only be found at high elevations. Sad to say, but many of these remaining species are endangered or threatened with most of them likely to be extinct in the coming decades.