Extinct in the Wild
Hawaiian Crow
Corvus hawaiiensis
Hawaiian Crow is a perching bird in the family Corvidae (order Passeriformes) — Corvus hawaiiensis, recorded as Extinct in the Wild and tied to United States.
Appearance
It is about the size of the carrion crow at 48–50 cm (19–20 in) in length, but with more rounded wings and a much thicker bill. It has soft, brownish-black plumage and long, bristly throat feathers. The feet, legs, and bill are black.
Range and habitat
Before the Hawaiian crow became extinct in the wild, the species was found only in the western and southeastern parts of Hawaii. It inhabited dry and mesic forests on the slopes of Mauna Loa and Hualālai at elevations of 3,000 to 6,000 feet. Ōhiʻa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha) and koa (Acacia koa) were important tree species in its wild habitat. Fossil remains indicate that the Hawaiian crow used to be relatively abundant on all the main islands of Hawaii, along with four other now-extinct crow species.
The Hawaiian crow or ʻalalā is a bird in the crow family, Corvidae, that is currently extinct in the wild, though reintroduction programs are underway.
Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.
Diet and breeding
The main portion of their diet and 50% of their feeding activity is spent foraging on trunks, branches, and foliage for invertebrates such as isopods, land snails, and arachnids. Fruits are the second most dominant component in the Hawaiian crow's diet.
Passerine Nestlings and eggs are consumed most frequently in April and May, during their breeding season. Other prey include red-billed leiothrix, Japanese white-eye, Hawaiʻi ʻamakihi, ʻIʻiwi, ʻelepaio, and ʻapapane. The Hawaiian crow's breeding season lasts from March to July. It builds a nest in March or April, lays eggs in mid-to-late April, and the eggs hatch in mid-May.
In crisis
Today, the Hawaiian crow is considered the most endangered of the family Corvidae. It is thought that introduced diseases, introduced predators, and habitat loss were probably significant factors in the species' decline. The Hawaiian crow faces an ample number of threats in the wild, that are considered contributing factors to their extinction in the wild.
Like other critically endangered species, harming the Hawaiian crow is illegal under U.S. Federal law. By 1994, the overall population had dwindled to 31 individuals. 8 to 12 were wild and 19 held in captivity.
Hawaiian Crow is Extinct in the Wild on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.
Sources
Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Hawaiian Crow, Wikidata item Q247472. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.
