Mamo

Mamo birds that were popularly known as woo-woo are extinct birds and were classified as two species, namely, the Hawaii mamo and the black mamo that was the native species of Hawaii that were completely extinct in the year 1898, although some of the studies claimed that the black mamo was seen just 14 years later in 1907. But even the black mamo was declared extinct according to the conservation status of extinct of 1907. The two species together belong to the family of Fringillidae, that is a family that consists of all the small to medium-sized passerine. They were primarily seed-eating birds that had stout bills in order to crack open and grind the hard seeds as well. They belong to the genus Drepanis and of order Passeriformes and of a subfamily carduelinae.

They are basically the nectarivorous  -finches (the seed-eating birds that primarily derive all their required nutrients and the energy from the diet that is rich in sugar-content that is produced in the form of nectar by the flowers of plants). They primitively belong to a single geographic location and many studies established that though they migrated seasonally, they never have widespread habitat in any other geographic location other than Hawaii. Their name is derived from the Hawaiian name of another similar looking bird named Moho nobilis, which is also an extinct species from the genus moho that was considered as Astrelo-Pacific honeyeater.

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Types of Mamo

Hawaii Mamo

1. Description

Hawaii mamo bird is scientifically known as Drepanis pacifica and had a total body length of about 9 in (23 cm) with a black and yellow touch. It has a little elongated oval-shaped head that had a long curved bill that was about three inches long. It possesses beautiful black eyes that were small and was always the centrepiece of any portrait. It has mostly black plumage with bright yellow coloured feathers on its rump, thigh feathers and under tail coverts. They also had a beautiful canary yellow patch around the neck that gave a look of a neckband. The colour of their legs is believed to vary from black to dark grey in colour. The tail was black with the base having white primary patches and with white narrow and long sections at the primaries. The juveniles are believed to be brown in colour.

They were generally shy in nature but were known for their singing songs with whistling and squeaking voices. They are believed to have nine to ten primary feathers on each wing and in the present Hawaiian honeycreepers, the tenth primary feather is no longer functional. It also had a tube-like tongue that ended in a fringed tip that supported the species to draw the nectar from natural sources. The study of their fossils has derived that the males of the Hawaii mamo were brighter than that of the females.

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2. Geographic Range, Habitat and Diet 

They are the native of the Hawaiian island and have been concentrated in the same place and haven’t been inhabitants of any other place than their native one. They mostly preferred to dwell in the tropical and subtropical forests that range from dry to very wet climates. A study of their fossils was also suggested that some of the species might have habitat in the treeless islands of Hawaii.

They mostly feed on sugar-rich nutrient sources such as nectars, seeds as well as seed pods, tree saps. They prefer to feed on the flower of a native plant called Metrosideros polymorpha that was known for its rich nectar source.

3. Behaviour and Reproduction

From the present existing species of honeycreepers of which mamo was also a part, a fair idea of their behaviour, as well as the reproduction methods are quite clear.  Mamo birds are believed to be diurnal that is active during the day and sleeps during the night. They used to search for food mostly alone or in family groups while some species bred in mixed flocks. The breed pairing was monogamous in nature as the breeding pair used to be strongly connected. They had a wide range of calls that varied between species.  

The nests formed by the breeding pair were often open cupped in shape made up of grasses, rootlets, twigs, grasses, lunches and often of the other plant materials that are of fibrous nature. The breeding and the feeding territory was secured very aggressively by the species while sometimes they even used to tolerate the visitors. The territories were supposed to be ranging from 1 to 1.5 acres in area. Their mating seasons are believed to be ranging from May to July or even could extend from January to August. The young ones were usually blind and helpless. Thus the incubation was done by the mother while the male partner brooded for the mother as well as the young.   

4. Settlers Impact and Existence

The birds were quite well known to the European collectors. The European settlers in Hawaii changed the habitat of the bird species to support their other preferred livestock, primarily cattle. To increase their gazing range, they were set free and that has severely affected the understory ecosystem. As a result of this, much of the dietary habitat of the Hawaiian mamo was destroyed. Some of the species that survived the loss of habitat died due to the introduced disease in the country. By the time it was discovered and the Hawaiians came to know about the endangerment of the species they were already extinct.

The bird is believed to disappear in the year 1899, but few of the specimens are still well-preserved in the museums of America and Europe. Many of the reports claimed to have noticed this species post-1899 (the year of its extinction) in their native habitat for a few more years before it was actually completely extinct. The last-mentioned site is described to be the Kaumana of the islands of Hawaii in the year 1898. It was described by one of the European collectors named Henry W. Henshaw that shot and wounded the last Hawaii mamo that was left before it could flee away with other birds.     

5. Significance in Hawaiian Culture

The Hawaii memo was one of the prestigious and renowned birds among the pre-European Hawaiian society. Their yellow feathers were used to create special capes and hats for the royalties of Europe. The massive collecting for the same purpose has resulted in the massive decline of the bird population. The famous yellow clock that was worn by the royalty the Kamehameha(l) took almost eight monarchs and the golden feathers that were plucked out of 80,000 birds to complete it.

The Hawaii memos were caught by using a sticky glue that was carved out of the sandalwood tree and the breadfruit that was then stuck around the blossoms of the lobelias that were famous for their nectars among the birds. When the hungry memo came and sat to drink the nectar their feet used to get stuck to the glue that was called a nap.

Many of the scientific studies derived that after the plucking of the feathers of the species either they were domesticated or cooked. But some scientists alternatively believed that there was a kapu or a restriction that demanded the live release of the bird and hence they were set free. Though the released birds were under shock and became very prone to injury even after the fact that they were tame and unafraid when captured and have survived the handling better than any other bird. 

Black Mamo

A black mamo is also commonly known as Perkins memo as it was first discovered in June 1893 in Pelekunu valley at an island of Hawaii named Molokai at an altitude of 1525 meters by R.C.L. Perkins. But later the scientists also found its fossils on the island Maui that signifies that these species also inhabited the island as well. It is also known as Molokai mamo that literally means “having a sucking beak”. According to the studies of the Perkin, these species were largely seen on the ground most of the time walking through the bushes. By the fact that they were quite susceptible to being prayed for spending so much time on the ground, they were very fearless and tame in nature. Perkin also described that the black mamo had a striking similarity in its characteristics including the voices and the singing patter as that of Hawaii mamo. Thus black is the extinct species of the genus drepanis that is also known as a hoe. It was named so based on the colouration of its plumage which appears to be sombre dull black. 

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1. Description of Black Mamo Bird

They were about 8inches (20cm) in length from head to the tip of the tail. They have a very similar structural resemblance to a Hawaii mamo but its plumage is glossy and completely black with its primaries being faded white and the base of the bill has a yellowish hue to it. Perkin has described the bird in his writings as a bird that has a crown shape on its head that is beautifully encrusted with plentiful white as well as purplish-white pollens and lobelias that give them a singular structure. They looked very comical as they stretched their wings to clean and tidy the feathers with the help of the beak. They also needed to extend their necks in order to reach out to the rare end of their body. The males usually had longer curved bills than females. These mamos were a group of good whistlers as their primary calling sound sounded more like a flute with a long-held out trill.

As they were the understory birds that used to spend most of their time strolling on the ground their habitat was destroyed by the introduction of the cattle as well as goats and other such livestock that were set free to gaze at most of their territorial land. Rats and mongoose were also introduced to prey on their eggs. The last specimen of the black mamo bird was discovered in the year 1907, after almost 14 years of it being declared extinct. It was discovered by William Alanson Bryan. Though after a few years the sighting of this bird completely stopped and was found nowhere in its native habitat. That is when in the year 1936 a large-scale search program was launched in order to trace down the species but not a single specimen of the black memo was found. Many of the scientists also believed that the disease was introduced in their habitats that they were not immune to and that caused massive death of the bulk that survived the habitat destruction.

They are classified as extinct though their specimens are well preserved at Bremen, Boston, London, Honolulu and New York City.

Summary at a Glance

The mamo birds are divided into two species : Hawaii Mamo and Black Mamo. Both belong to the family of Fringillidae and of the order Passeriformes because they primarily feed on seeds. They are basically small to medium-sized birds of length approximately 9 inches or 23 cm and are nectarivorous in nature. They had long curved bills and a black body. But the Hawaii Mamo has a yellowish base of the bill, neckband and thigh feathers as well. The males are brighter than females and the males have more curved bills than females in black mamo. Black mamo was first found in June 1893 in Pelekunu valley at an island of Hawaii named Molokai at an altitude of 1525 meters by R.C.L. Perkins. They were officially declared extinct in the year 1898.