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Oʻahu ʻamakihi
The Oʻahu ʻamakihi (''Chlorodrepanis flava'') is a species of Hawaiian honeycreeper in the family Fringillidae. The male is rich yellow below, sharply contrasted with greenish upper parts. Females are duller and have two prominent wing-bars. It has a total length of approximately . It is endemic to the island of Oahu in Hawaii, and is likely the only surviving honeycreeper endemic to the island. Taxonomy The Oʻahu ʻamakihi was first named by Andrew Bloxam (as ''Nectarina flava''). He saw it and collected specimens from Oʻahu while in the Hawaiian Islands in 1825 as the naturalist on board HMS ''Blonde''. The species was formerly placed in the genus ''Hemignathus'' but was assigned to ''Chlorodrepanis'' based on the phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences. Habitat It tends to stay in the wetter southern area of Oahu, and in the valley near Wahiawa and Mililani. It can easily be spotted in two major parks, the Honouliuli Preserve, and the Wa'ah ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andrew Bloxam
Andrew Bloxam (22 September 1801 – 2 February 1878) was an English clergyman and naturalist; in his later life he had a particular interest in botany. He was the naturalist on board during its voyage around South America and the Pacific in 1824–26, where he collected mainly birds. Later as a Church of England minister he lived in Warwickshire and Leicestershire and made significant contributions to the study of the natural history of the area. His special interest was in fungi and the genera ''Rubus'' and ''Rosa''. His botanical author abbreviation is "A.Bloxam". Early life and family Andrew Bloxam was born at Rugby, Warwickshire, on 22 September 1801. He was the fourth son of Rev. Richard Rouse Bloxam, who was a schoolmaster at Rugby School, and Ann(e) Lawrence, who was the sister of the painter Sir Thomas Lawrence. He was educated at Rugby School from 1809 and Worcester College, Oxford, from 1820. His brothers included Matthew Bloxam and John Rouse Bloxam. In the autumn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic Birds Of Hawaii
There are 71 known taxa of birds endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, of which 30 are extinct, 6 possibly extinct and 30 of the remaining 48 species and subspecies are listed as endangered or threatened by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Habitat loss and avian disease are thought to have had the greatest effect on endemic bird species in Hawaii. List of species The following is a list of bird species and subspecies endemic to the Hawaiian Islands: Procellariidae * Hawaiian petrel or uau, ''Pterodroma sandwichensis'' * Newell's shearwater or ao, ''Puffinus newelli'' * Bryan's shearwater, ''Puffinus bryani'' ('' P. assimilis'': ) * Bonin petrel, ''Pterodroma hypoleuca'' 99% of the total population breeds on the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Anatidae * Hawaiian goose or nēnē, ''Branta sandvicensis'' * Hawaiian duck or koloa maoli, ''Anas wyvilliana'' * Laysan duck, ''Anas laysanensis'' Diomedeidae * Laysan albatross, ''Phoebastria immutabilis'' 99.7% o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biota Of Oahu
Biota may refer to: * Biota (ecology), the plant and animal life of a region * Biota (plant), common name for a coniferous tree, ''Platycladus orientalis'' * Biota, Cinco Villas, a municipality in Aragon, Spain * Biota (band), a band from Colorado, USA * Biota! Biota! was a proposed aquarium in the Silvertown Quays redevelopment, on the site of Millennium Mills adjacent to the Royal Victoria Dock, part of the wider Thames Gateway regeneration project for East London. The £80 million building by Ter ..., a proposed aquarium in London * ''Biota'' (album), a 1982 album by Mnemonist Orchestra See also * {{disambiguation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawaiian Honeycreepers
Hawaiian may refer to: * Native Hawaiians, the current term for the indigenous people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants * Hawaii state residents, regardless of ancestry (only used outside of Hawaii) * Hawaiian language Historic uses * things and people of the Kingdom of Hawaii, during the period from 1795 to 1893 * things and people of the Republic of Hawaii, the short period between the overthrow of the monarchy and U.S. annexation * things and people of the Territory of Hawaii, during the period the area was a U.S. territory from 1898 to 1959 * things and people of the Sandwich Islands, the name used for the Hawaiian Islands around the end of the 18th century Other uses * Hawaiian Airlines, a commercial airline based in Hawaii * Hawaiian pizza, a style of pizza topped with pineapple See also * Hawaiians (other) * Hawaiian cuisine (other) * Hawaiian Islands * Hawaiian kinship Hawaiian kinship, also referred to as the generational system, is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vector (epidemiology)
In epidemiology, a disease vector is any living agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen to another living organism; agents regarded as vectors are organisms, such as parasites or microbes. The first major discovery of a disease vector came from Ronald Ross in 1897, who discovered the malaria pathogen when he dissected a mosquito. Arthropods Arthropods form a major group of pathogen vectors with mosquitoes, flies, sand flies, lice, fleas, ticks, and mites transmitting a huge number of pathogens. Many such vectors are haematophagous, which feed on blood at some or all stages of their lives. When the insects feed on blood, the pathogen enters the blood stream of the host. This can happen in different ways. The ''Anopheles'' mosquito, a vector for malaria, filariasis, and various arthropod-borne-viruses (arboviruses), inserts its delicate mouthpart under the skin and feeds on its host's blood. The parasites the mosquito carries are usually located in its salivary gla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mosquito
Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "little fly". Mosquitoes have a slender segmented body, one pair of wings, one pair of halteres, three pairs of long hair-like legs, and elongated mouthparts. The mosquito life cycle consists of egg, larva, pupa, and adult stages. Eggs are laid on the water surface; they hatch into motile larvae that feed on aquatic algae and organic material. These larvae are important food sources for many freshwater animals, such as dragonfly nymphs, many fish, and some birds such as ducks. The adult females of most species have tube-like mouthparts (called a proboscis) that can pierce the skin of a host and feed on blood, which contains protein and iron needed to produce eggs. Thousands of mosquito species feed on the blood of various hosts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avian Malaria
Avian malaria is a parasitic disease of birds, caused by parasite species belonging to the genera ''Plasmodium'' and '' Hemoproteus'' (phylum Apicomplexa, class Haemosporidia, family Plasmoiidae). The disease is transmitted by a dipteran vector including mosquitoes in the case of ''Plasmodium'' parasites and biting midges for ''Hemoproteus.'' The range of symptoms and effects of the parasite on its bird hosts is very wide, from asymptomatic cases to drastic population declines due to the disease, as is the case of the Hawaiian honeycreepers. The diversity of parasites is large, as it is estimated that there are approximately as many parasites as there are species of hosts. Co-speciation and host switching events have contributed to the broad range of hosts that these parasites can infect, causing avian malaria to be a widespread global disease, found everywhere except Antarctica. Cause Avian malaria is most notably caused by ''Plasmodium relictum'', a protist that infects birds i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Habitat Loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby reducing biodiversity and species abundance. Habitat destruction is the leading cause of biodiversity loss. Fragmentation and loss of habitat have become one of the most important topics of research in ecology as they are major threats to the survival of endangered species. Activities such as harvesting natural resources, industrial production and urbanization are human contributions to habitat destruction. Pressure from agriculture is the principal human cause. Some others include mining, logging, trawling, and urban sprawl. Habitat destruction is currently considered the primary cause of species extinction worldwide. Environmental factors can contribute to habitat destruction more indirectly. Geological processes, climate change, introdu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Down Feather
The down of birds is a layer of fine feathers found under the tougher exterior feathers. Very young birds are clad only in down. Powder down is a specialized type of down found only in a few groups of birds. Down is a fine thermal insulator and padding, used in goods such as jackets, bedding (duvets and featherbeds), pillows and sleeping bags. The discovery of feathers trapped in ancient amber suggests that some species of dinosaur may have possessed down-like feathers. Description and etymology The word ''down'' comes from the Old Norse word ''dúnn'', which had the same meaning as its modern equivalent. The down feather is considered to be the most "straightforward" of all feather types. It has a short or vestigial rachis (shaft), few barbs, and barbules that lack hooks. There are three types of down: natal down, body down and powder down. Natal down is the layer of down feathers that cover most birds at some point in their early development. Precocial nestlings are alre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bird Egg
Bird eggs are laid by the females and range in quantity from one (as in condors) to up to seventeen (the grey partridge). Clutch size may vary latitudinally within a species. Some birds lay eggs even when the eggs have not been fertilized; it is not uncommon for pet owners to find their lone bird nesting on a clutch of infertile eggs, which are sometimes called wind-eggs. Anatomy All bird eggs contain the following components: * The embryo is the immature developing chick * The amnion is a membrane that initially covers the embryo and eventually fills with amniotic fluid, provides the embryo with protection against shock from movement * The allantois helps the embryo obtain oxygen and handles metabolic waste * The chorion, together with the amnion, forms the amniotic sac and encloses the amnion, vitellus, and the embryo * The vitellus, or yolk, is the nutrient-bearing portion of the egg, containing most of its fat, minerals, and many of its proteins and blood vessels * The alb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metrosideros Polymorpha
''Metrosideros polymorpha'', the ''ōhia lehua'', is a species of flowering evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that is endemic to the six largest islands of Hawaii. It is a highly variable tree, being tall in favorable situations, and a much smaller prostrate shrub when growing in boggy soils or directly on basalt. It produces a brilliant display of flowers, made up of a mass of stamens, which can range from fiery red to yellow. Many native Hawaiian traditions refer to the tree and the forests it forms as sacred to Pele, the volcano goddess, and to Laka, the goddess of hula. Ōhia trees grow easily on lava, and are usually the first plants to grow on new lava flows. It is a common misconception that the word ''ōhia'' is used to refer to the tree and that the word ''lehua'' refers only to its flowers. ''The Hawaiian Dictionary'' (Pukui and Elbert 1986: 199) defines ''lehua'' with these words: "The flower of the ''ōhia'' tree... ''also the tree itself'' mphasis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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