Five years ago, seven endangered Maui parrotbills, also known as kiwikiu, were transported to an East Maui forest in hopes of establishing a new colony. The idea was to protect them from malaria-carrying mosquitos in lower elevations.
But the program failed, and all translocated birds in Nakula were believed to have died. Then last fall, a report surfaced of the capture of a kiwikiu named MAPA1 — proof of a sole survivor.
And more good news, MAPA1 appears to have some resistance to avian malaria — and has mated to add two more baby Maui parrotbills to the population.
Researchers have added a red band on MAPA1's leg to tell him apart from other kiwikiu.
Fun Fact: MAPA is the four-letter bird code for a Maui parrotbill, used when conducting point counts for species population estimates. Kiwikiu has not been accepted yet as the bird's official name, so it's still the English abbreviation.
Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project avian field research supervisor Laura Berthold and former avian research technician Zach Pezzillo updated The Conversation on the story of MAPA1.
Berthold said researchers collect field measurements to help with sexing and aging, keep track of birds' health, and look at breeding condition.
Pezzillo said, "It was incredible to receive that call from Laura from the field, letting me know that MAPA1 had made it back to his home territory in Hanawi Natural Area Reserve."
He said MAPA1's survival story gives them hope for the future of Hawaiʻi birds.
"Everyone was just so emotional that he was still alive and he had made this journey from the other side of the mountain," Berthold said. "Probably an 8 to 10-mile journey for this tiny bird, to come back to his home so that he could find a mate."
This interview aired on The Conversation on April 29, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
