Akohekohe

Overview

Akohekohe: Medium honeycreeper, mainly black with white or gray crested forehead. Orange eyering extends to orange-red nape. Breast and throat feathers are gray-tipped, orange-tipped feathers scattered over rest of the body. Wings and tail have white edges. Black legs, bill. Direct, strong flight.

Range and Habitat

Akohekohe: Endemic to the island of Maui. Common in moist forests on the east slopes of Haleakala from 5,500' to 7,000'. Formerly found on West Maui and Molokai this bird is decreasing in numbers and it is estimated that there are 3,700 individuals remaining.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Akohekohe is also known as the Crested Honeycreeper. Despite its name, it is a member of the Finch rather than the Tanager family, where honeycreepers found in Central and South America are currently placed. Its subfamily, Drepanidinae was formerly considered a family, has become a subfamily of the Fringillidae family due to advances in molecular studies.
It prefers the flowers found on the O’hia-lehua tree and will attack other nectarivores during low blooming periods.
Once common on the islands of Maui and Molokai, today less than 4,000 are found on Maui.
A group of honeycreepers are collectively known as a "hive" of honeycreepers.