Scissor-billed Koa-finch
Encyclopedia
The Scissor-billed Koa-finch, (Rhodacanthis forfex) or Scissor Finch is an extinct
species of finch
in the Hawaiian honeycreeper
subfamily
, Drepanididae. Of the four species in the genus Rhodacanthis
, the Scissor-billed Koa Finch and the Primitive Koa-finch
became extinct before the arrival of the first Europeans to Hawaii in 1778. It was endemic to the islands of Maui
and Kauai
in the Hawaiian Islands
.
, that, like the other members of its genus, had a bill adapted to eat the hard seed
s and pods of legumes. Pollen
and fossil
evidence indicates that Ka palupalu o Kanaloa (Kanaloa kahoolawensis) and koaia (Acacia koaia
) were probably important food sources, and it may have eaten caterpillar
s and aalii (Dodonaea viscosa
) berries
.
remains. Other Hawaiian honeycreeper
s are known to have become extinct or very rare due to habitat loss, introduced predators and avian diseases. It is possible the extinction of the Scissor-billed Koa-finch also involved these factors.
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
species of finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...
in the Hawaiian honeycreeper
Hawaiian honeycreeper
Hawaiian honeycreepers are small, passerine birds endemic to Hawaii. Some authorities still categorize this group as a family Drepanididae, but in recent years, most authorities consider them a subfamily, Drepanidinae, of Fringillidae, the finch family...
subfamily
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, Drepanididae. Of the four species in the genus Rhodacanthis
Rhodacanthis
Rhodacanthis is an extinct genus of finches in the Hawaiian honeycreeper subfamily, Drepanidinae. All four species were endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Members of this genus were granivores, with bills adapted to the seeds and pods of legumes. The two species that became extinct in the 1890s,...
, the Scissor-billed Koa Finch and the Primitive Koa-finch
Primitive Koa-finch
The Primitive Koa-finch is a species of finch in the Hawaiian honeycreeper subfamily, Drepanididae. It was endemic to Hawaii. Of the four species in the genus Telespiza, it and the Scissor-billed Koa-finch became extinct before the arrival of the first Europeans to Hawaii in 1778...
became extinct before the arrival of the first Europeans to Hawaii in 1778. It was endemic to the islands of Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
and Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
in the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
.
Diet
The Scissor-billed Koa-finch was a granivoreSeed predation
Seed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores feed on the seeds of plants as a main or exclusive food source, in many cases leaving the seeds damaged and not viable...
, that, like the other members of its genus, had a bill adapted to eat the hard seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s and pods of legumes. Pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
and fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
evidence indicates that Ka palupalu o Kanaloa (Kanaloa kahoolawensis) and koaia (Acacia koaia
Acacia koaia
Acacia koaia, known as koaia or koaie in Hawaiian, is a tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It is closely related to koa , and is sometimes considered to be the same species...
) were probably important food sources, and it may have eaten caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s and aalii (Dodonaea viscosa
Dodonaea viscosa
Dodonaea viscosa is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae, that has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, the Americas, southern Asia and Australasia.-Description:...
) berries
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
.
Extinction
Due to its early extinction, very little is known about this species. It is only known from fossilFossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
remains. Other Hawaiian honeycreeper
Hawaiian honeycreeper
Hawaiian honeycreepers are small, passerine birds endemic to Hawaii. Some authorities still categorize this group as a family Drepanididae, but in recent years, most authorities consider them a subfamily, Drepanidinae, of Fringillidae, the finch family...
s are known to have become extinct or very rare due to habitat loss, introduced predators and avian diseases. It is possible the extinction of the Scissor-billed Koa-finch also involved these factors.