Endangered ‘alala
fighting uphill battle
for survival
Three have been found dead
By Rod Thompson
in the past week
Star-BulletinSOUTH KONA, Hawaii -- An effort to save the critically endangered Hawaiian crow, also known as the 'alala, suffered a major setback in two days this week with the deaths of three birds in the wild, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced.
That lowered the number of the birds in the wild to just six, half the number that existed when a multi-agency program to save them began in 1992, said Barbara Maxfield of Fish and Wildlife.
An additional 26 'alala are safely housed at the Maui Bird Conservation Center, the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center on the Big Island, and in open air enclosures in South Kona, Maxfield said.
Two of the three deaths this week were apparently caused by another endangered species, the Hawaiian hawk or 'io.
The number of 'io are believed to be in the thousands, and studies are underway to see whether their classification should be changed from endangered to threatened, Maxfield said.
Those studies won't be complete until the year 2000, and a change in designation wouldn't have affected this week's losses, she said.
Two other 'alala were attacked by 'io last week and survived, said Robert Smith of Fish and Wildlife.
They are in captivity again, where they are acting lethargically, possibly indicating they were weak or sick before they were attacked, he said.
The third 'alala found dead this week had no visible evidence of the cause of death, Smith said.
All three birds will be examined to determine the cause of death.
A total of eight 'alala have died in the wild this year, Smith said. Besides attacks by 'io, the crows were also killed by a cat or mongoose and infections.
"Since we have seen a variety of infections in the 'alala lately, it is possible that these birds were too sick to be able to fend off 'io attacks," Smith said.
He warned against pointing fingers at the 'io, since one crow is known to have died of a disease carried by wild cats.
Maxfield said attempts have been made to protect wild 'alala by capturing 'io and moving them to the other side of the island. The same hawks were back in Kona within three months, she said. Some 'io were permanently removed. Other 'io moved into South Kona to take their place, she said.
"Our challenge is to find some creative solutions to aid the 'alala without harming the 'io," said Paul Conry of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, also participating in the 'alala recovery program.
Alan Lieberman of the private Peregrine Fund, another partner in the effort, said, "It appears we cannot win a numbers game without effective control of the threats in the habitat."
