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GALLERIES > BIRDS > PASSERIFORMES > TURDIDAE > KAMAO [Myadestes myadestinus]

Kamao Picture
 
 

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SPECIES INFO

The K?ma?o or Large Kauai Thrush, Myadestes myadesitinus, was a small, dark solitaire endemic to Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands. It grew up to 8 inches in length. The male and female of the species looked similar. It was dark brown above and gray below with black legs. It was closely related to the other species of Hawaiian thrushes, the Puaiohi, the Omao and the probably extinct Olomao.

Its song consisted of a complex melody of flute-like notes, liquid warbles, buzzy trills, and gurgling whistles. The call was a raspy "braak," with an alternate high pitched note similar to a police whistle. This bird occurred in densely vegetated gulches, frequenting the understory where it often perched motionless in a hunched posture. Like other native Hawaiian thrushes, it quivered its wings and fed primarily on fruits and insects.

The K?ma?o is classified as extinct. The last probable sighting occurred in 1989 in in the Alaka?i Wilderness Area, its last stonghold. In the late 1800s, it was considered the commonest bird on Kauai, occurring throughout all areas of the island, but land clearing and avian malaria brought on by introduced mosquitoes decimated the birds. Introduced animals such as feral pigs (which create pools from their wallows for breeding mosquitoes) and rats (which feed on eggs and unfledged birds) also added to the bird's demise. Competition from introduced bird species may also have led to further declines.





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