Chinese Hwamei
This week’s bird is the Chinese Hwamei (Garrulax canorus). It is native to Southeast China and parts of Laos and Vietnam, but it also has been introduced in Taiwan, Japan, and Hawaii. I have seen it twice, both times in Hawaii on the two times I’ve visited – once in Maui and a second time in Kauai. While I certainly enjoyed seeing it, it raised my awareness of problems associated with introduced species, especially in places like Hawaii. More about that later.
The Chinese Hwamei is a member of the Leiothrichidae family, commonly known as Laughingthrushes and consisting of 133 bird species in 16 genera. This group is found in the tropics, mostly in Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. The Chinese Hwamei is the only species from this group that I have observed and identified. While I may have come across them when Janet and I spent 4 weeks in Indonesia (visiting friends and exploring parts of Sumatra, Java, and Bali), I wasn’t much into birding at that time so wouldn’t have noticed them. The only specific bird I recall seeing was a Hornbill (one of possibly 9 species) in a Sumatran rainforest. So the only Laughingthrush currently on my bird lifelist is the Chinese Hwamei.
What it looks like
The Chinese Hwamei is a medium-sized, thrush-like bird (about 9 inches long – somewhat smaller than an American Robin) with plain, reddish brown coloration and a yellow bill. Its most striking feature is the distinctive white markings around its eyes and a white line extending from the eye toward the back of its head. These markings give it a bespectacled look. Its name “Hwamei” is based on this feature and comes from the Mandarin word for “painted eyebrow.”
Although it is a common bird in Hawaii, it is shy, preferring dense vegetation. More commonly heard than seen, it tends to be most visible around dawn and dusk as it sings from an exposed perch. The Hwamei’s song is long, loud, and varied, including mimicked phrases of other birds along with repeated phrases involving whistles and harsh notes.
The Hwamei is common today on Kauai, Maui, and the island of Hawaii, where it inhabits scrub land, open woodland, native and exotic forests, parks and gardens, from sea level up to about 5000 feet. It feeds among leaf litter on the ground, and forages for insects, fruit, and seeds.
Other birds in Hawaii
‘Apapane
The ‘Apapane (Himatione sanguinea) is the most abundant of the Hawaiian honeycreepers. It is found on all but one of the major Hawaiian Islands (Oahu is the exception), common in forests at elevations above 1,000 meters, and closely associated with the ‘ohi’a flowering plant. Sexes are similar, with bright crimson plumage, black wings and tail, and white under the tail. As it moves through the ‘ohi’a tree, the ‘Apapane’s long, decurved bill is well suited to probe flower clusters for nectar and insects. This picture was taken on March 20, 2019, in Kaua’I, at the trailhead parking area for the Pu’u O Kila Lookout, at about 3,600 feet. It was the start of a great hike with my good friend, Wendy, from college days. She and her boyfriend Sly hosted me for a great and unforgettable week-long trip. I am looking forward to a return visit if they’ll have me.
Common Myna
The only species that sort of looks like the Hwamei is the Common Myna, another introduced species. Unlike the Hwamei, the Common Myna is a gregarious, ubiquitous bird, the first to greet you in the airport parking lot when you deplane from your flight. The only superficial similarity is the marking around the eye, but it is yellow, not white. The Common Myna was introduced in Hawaii from India in the 1860s to control worms, which also were introduced by human settlers. More about that below.
Warbling White-eye
A small, active bird, the Warbling White-eye is characterized by a bold white circle around the eye. It is olive-green above, with a lemon-yellow throat and pale gray underparts. Both sexes are similar. It was introduced in the late 1920s as a way to control agricultural and garden pests, and spread rapidly. Initially it was thought that the Warbling White-eye could peacefully co-exist with native birds. However, biologists now believe that it outcompetes native species for food sources, resulting in the native bird offspring becoming undernourished.
The problem with introduced species
Although the Hwamei has firmly established itself in Hawaii as an exotic species, it doesn’t appear to pose as great a threat as other introductions. However, one of my goals for this web page is to promote conservation, so if you’ll allow me, I’d like to share some information about the ongoing threats to bird species unique to Hawaii.
Historically, the Hawaiian Islands were to honeycreepers as the Gallapagos were to finches. Just as Darwin’s finches evolved with different beak sizes and shapes to take advantage of different seeding plants found on the Gallapagos, honeycreeper species evolved with different bill sizes and shapes to take advantage of the structure of flowering plants to extract nectar. Biologists documented that there were 142 unique bird species on the Hawaiian Islands found nowhere else (referred to as endemic species) before settlers arrived in Hawaii.
Unfortunately, that’s no longer the case. According to the American Bird Conservancy, Hawaii is the bird extinction capital of the world, with 95 of those 142 species now extinct. Of the remaining endemic species, 33 are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and 11 of those have not been seen for decades and are likely extinct. Of those remaining, birds such as the ‘Akikiki, ‘I‘iwi, and Kiwikiu face multiple threats from invasive bird species, ranging from loss of their feeding and nesting areas to direct predation by invasive species.
Another major threat comes from mosquito-borne diseases that have decimated Hawaiian bird populations. Many of these endemic birds evolved without mosquitos. Once mosquitos were introduced, most likely via whaling ships in the early 1800s, they spread diseases through the bird populations, in many cases wiping them out at lower elevations. With climate change, mosquitoes have been spreading into higher elevations and continue to represent a dire threat to the remaining endemic bird populations. Sorry for all the bad news; however, there are ongoing conservation efforts attempting to save the remaining populations, including mosquito control.
More to come
Later this year, I’ll be featuring some other birds that are native, but not endemic, to Hawaii, such as the Red-tailed Tropicbird. Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, next week I’ll feature the Wrentit, a small songbird found mostly along Pacific coast states.
If you missed last week, click here to read about the American Dipper.