Bishop's ʻŌʻō

Ohrbüschelmoho

The Ohrbüschelmoho ( Moho bishopi ) or Molokai Kraus tail is an extinct genus of passerine bird in the Kraus tails. Walter Rothschild named it after Charles Bishop, founder of the Bishop Museum.

Description

The Ohrbüschelmoho reached a length of 29 cm. The tail was about 10 cm long. The plumage was predominantly black, the chin, under the wings and under tail-coverts there were yellow feather tufts.

Dissemination

He was endemic in the mountain forests in the east of the Hawaiian island of Molokai. Subfossil bone finds there are also from the island of Maui.

Way of life

Little is known about his life. As far as we know, he fed on nectar and preferred flowers of Bellflower Family.

Extinction

The reasons for its extinction was habitat destruction through deforestation, the predation by introduced mammals, and disease, which have been introduced by mosquitoes. A subordinate role like the hunting have played for the coveted yellow feathers, which were used for making the capes for the noble estates. To this end, thousands were trapped by birds. Many were indeed released after plucking the feathers, but many others ended up in the cooking pot, because the meat of these birds was considered a delicacy. In 1904, he was last detected by the ornithologist George Campbell Munro. In 1915, Munro individual reports from the area of Wailau trails, but he could find no copy. In 1981 there should have been a sighting on Maui, which was never confirmed.