Change.org - Keep the kiwkiu in Hawaii

The kiwikiu (Maui parrotbill) is a critically endangered bird in Hawaii. Authorities want to relocate the species into captivity on the U.S. mainland – 5,000 miles from home. Bret is a Native Hawaiian conservationist who believes captivity on the mainland could lead to their extinction. Help support keeping the kiwikiu in their native habitat. Keep the Kiwkiu in Hawaiʻi 4,139 have signed Bret Mossman’s petition. Let’s get to 5,000!

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Itʻs Now or Never: Help Save the Kiwikiu  Please help support the efforts to bring awareness and provide assistance to the plight of our most imperiled bird the kiwikiu. Kiwikiu is an incredible honeycreeper that is endemic to the island of Maui. At one point their populations flourished and they could be seen all throughout the island (and even on Molokaʻi). However, in the early 1800s when new diseases and mosquitoes were introduced, kiwikiu were forced into their strongholds deep in the rainforests of Haleakalā. The kiwikiu is currently at the greatest risk of extinction out of all 33 Hawaiian bird species currently listed as endangered, and is likely the most threatened bird in the world. Their population is estimated at JUST 157 individuals and they have been predicted to go extinct as soon as 2026. Hawaiʻi is the endangered species and extinction capital of the WORLDand has lost over 77 species of birds. The most recent species to have fallen victim to extinction was in 2004. This bird, the Po’ouli, was also a Maui native, and its last known specimen died in captivity.  Recently, The Maui Forest Bird working group has proposed to place a significant portion (~ 20% of their entire population) of remaining kiwikiu into captivity and relocate them to the continental U.S. As a Kanaka (Native Hawaiian) who grew up in the mainland, finding my cultural identity was a tremendous challenge. Taking the kiwikiu from their home and shipping them off to the mainland will essentially be placing them in this same dilemma. Just as Kānaka disconnected from our ʻāina-- an integral part of our identity and culture as a people,-- will struggle to find themselves, captive Hawai‘i birds have been known to lose their natural behaviors, their culture, and even their songs. As a direct result of this the birds can no longer survive in a Hawaiian forest when returned, because the skills and behaviors that they have honed for millennia are lost to them.   As Kānaka, as a community, and as scientists we must raise our voices to fight this action as it does not uphold the traditional values and principles of respect held by our kūpuna toward our native manu (birds). Nor does placing these specialized honeycreepers in captivity on the U.S. continent,  in spite the shortcomings and difficulties observed in the past, represent a strong scientifically supported decision. Captivity in general should be the last course of action taken given its history in the islands and even then, it should be the responsibility of those who have had decades of experience caring for these types of birds rather than a program that has never supported a Hawaiian forest bird. In the same breath however, we must come together to support the conservation of the kiwikiu and be both a voice of reason as well as a part of the solution going forward. Extinction is forever, and only as a united community can we stop it. View the full petition here.

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