Hawaiian Birds and Hawaiian Honeycreepers
Smithsonian scientists have determined the evolutionary family tree for one of the most strikingly diverse and endangered bird families in the world – the Hawaiian Honeycreepers. The researchers determined the types of finches that the honeycreeper family originally evolved from and also linked the timing of that rapid evolution to the formation of the main Hawaiian Islands. Using genetic data from 28 bird species that seemed similar to the honeycreepers morphologically, genetically or that shared geographic proximity, it was determined that the various honeycreeper species evolved from Eurasian rosefinches.
There were once more than 55 species of these colorful songbirds, and they are so diverse that historically it wasn’t even entirely clear that they were all part of the same group. Honeycreepers probably represent the most impressive example of an adaptive radiation in vertebrates that has led to a number of beak shapes unique among birds. Some eat seeds, some eat fruit, some eat snails, some eat nectar. Some have the bills of parrots, others of warblers, while some are finch-like and others have straight, thin bills.
Hawaii’s unusual geology played a role in the rapid evolution of many honeycreeper species that followed. The volcanic islands have formed one by one over time, as the Pacific tectonic plate is dragged across a “hot spot” of magma, and each new island provided a new opportunity for colonization. Each island that forms represents a blank slate for evolution, so as one honeycreeper species moves from one island to a new island, those birds encounter new habitat and ecological niches that may force them to adapt and branch off into distinct species.
The researchers looked at the evolution of the Hawaiian honeycreepers after the formation of Kauai-Niihau, Oahu, Maui-Nui and Hawaii. The largest burst of evolution into new species, called a radiation, occurred between 4 million and 2.5 million years ago, after Kauai-Niihau and Oahu formed but before the remaining two large islands existed, and resulted in the evolution of six of 10 distinct groups of species characterized by different sizes, shapes and colors.
Humpback Whale Rescue
In the holiday spirit of giving and helping, please enjoy this daring whale rescue, and the resulting display of appreciation. The crew found the whale floating in the water barely alive, and after jumping in the water to investigate, found that this creature was tangled in fishing net, preventing it from moving its fins and tail. The crew worked for more than an hour to cut and pull the whale free from the net. Once they made the final cut, the whale swam in circles treating the crew to an amazing show of gratitude.
Hawaiian Monk Seal Ho‘ailona Returns
Hawaiian Monk Seal Ho‘ailona moved into his new home at the Waikiki Aquarium, where he will become an ambassador for the critically endangered species. After his mother abandoned him, he was found on a Kauai beach trying to suckle a rock. Known at that time as KP2, humans raised him until he was old enough to be released into the wild, and then set him free on Moloka‘i.
There, the seal gravitated to people and soon became famous for charming and playing with swimmers. But authorities had to take him away when he started holding people underwater. His eyesight was found to be poor, and he spent the past two years at a long-term care facility in California. The seal’s vision is only 20 to 30 percent of normal strength, but his hearing is good, and he uses this and sensors on his whiskers to get around. Veterinarians who examined Ho’ailona in California said the risks of operating on his eyes posed a greater risk than the inconvenience he is experiencing from his condition.
Hawaiian Monk Seals are a critically endangered species, and with only an estimated 1,100 seals left in existence, scientists say it’s everyone’s responsibility to ensure their survival. “I’m hoping that now that he’s back in Hawaii, we’re going to be able to bring the Molokai kids back into the discussions so that they can continue to serve as advocates for this highly endangered species,” said a Molokai resident.
Ocean Health
The world’s oceans are under siege from pollution, overfishing, and other man-made problems all at once, and their health is declining much faster than originally thought. Troubles from global warming, dead zones from farm run-off, an increase in acidity from too much carbon dioxide, habitat destruction, melting sea ice, along with overfishing are worse when they combine with each other all at once.
At an international meeting of marine scientists was designed to consider the cumulative impact of multiple stressors on the ocean. The 27 participants from 18 organizations in 6 countries produced a grave assessment of current threats: that the world’s ocean is at high risk of entering a phase of extinction of marine species unprecedented in human history.
Case Study 1 In Brief: Most, if not all, of the five global mass extinctions in Earth’s history carry the fingerprints of the main symptoms of global carbon perturbations (global warming, ocean acidification and anoxia or lack of oxygen). It is these three factors which are present in the ocean today. In fact, the current carbon perturbation is unprecedented in the Earth’s history because of the high rate and speed of change. Acidification is occurring faster than in the past 55 million years, and with the added man-made stressors of overfishing and pollution, undermining ocean resilience.
Case Study 2 In Brief: What the multi-disciplinary approach of the IPSO workshop made clear for the first time was the multiple threats reefs are facing, that are now acting together to have a greater impact than if they were occurring on their own. This suggests that existing scientific projections of how coral reefs will respond to global warming have been highly conservative and must now be modified.
Case Study 3 In Brief: Continued releases and slow breakdown rates mean that legacy chemical pollution remains a major concern. However, concerns have been raised recently over a wide range of novel chemicals now being found in marine ecosystems or suspected to be harmful to marine life. Some of these chemicals have been located recently in the Canadian Arctic seas, and some are known to be endocrine disrupters or can damage immune systems. Marine litter and plastics are also of major concern, and there is evidence that certain plastics can transport other harmful chemicals in the marine environment.
Case Study 4 In Brief: Scientists agreed that overfishing is exerting an intolerable pressure on ecosystems already under attack by the effects of acidification and warming, and other largely man-made ocean problems. A recent study showed that 63% of the assessed fish stocks worldwide are over-exploited or depleted and over half of them require further reduction of fishing, in order to recover.
Some of the changes affecting the world’s seas – all of which have been warned about individually in the past – are happening faster than the worst case scenarios that were predicted just a few years ago.
Protecting Coral Species From Extinction
Coral reefs around the world are facing extinction due to overfishing, pollution, and the overarching threats of global warming and ocean acidification. Corals in U.S. waters ranging from Florida and Hawaii to American territories in the Caribbean and Pacific, have all declined by more than 30 percent over a 30-year period. The U.S. government pledged to determine by April 2012, whether Endangered Species Act protections are needed for 83 species of coral.
Nine corals in Hawaii waters being considered for endangered species protection are: Fuzzy Table Coral (Acropora paniculata), Irregular Rice Coral or Hawaiian Reef Coral (Montipora dilatata), Blue Rice Coral (Montipora flabellata), Sandpaper Rice Coral, Spreading Coral or Ringed Rice Coral (Montipora patula), (Leptoseris incrustans), (Porites pukoensis), Agassiz’s Coral (Cyphastrea agassizi), Ocellated Coral (Cyphastrea ocellina), and Stellar Coral (Psammocora stellata).
Blue rice coral (Montipora flabellata), only found in Hawaii, blue rice coral is uncommon and thrives in shallow reefs pounded by waves. Although this coral is usually flat and sheetlike, on one reef in Molokai it grows branches with an opening at the tip that provides a home to small shrimp. Blue rice coral is vulnerable to bleaching, habitat degradation, and disease.
Hawaiian reef coral (Montipora dilatata) remains in fewer than five locations. It has the unfortunate trait of being among the first corals to bleach during increased water temperatures, and the slowest to recover. It has experienced significant climate-related population fluctuations over the last 20 years, and its small distribution makes it extremely vulnerable to extinction.
Scientists warn that by mid-century, coral reefs are likely to be the first worldwide ecosystem to collapse due to carbon dioxide pollution, which causes both global warming and ocean acidification. Warm water temperatures in 2010 marked the second-most deadly year on record for corals due to bleaching – a process by which they expel the colorful algae needed for their survival. Many corals die or succumb to disease after bleaching. An additional threat to coral reefs is ocean acidification, caused by the ocean’s absorption of CO2. The agreement is an important step toward legal protections for some of the most vulnerable coral reefs.
Hawaiian Reef Fish and Emperor Angelfish
Emperor Angelfish (Pomacanthus imperator) are Hawaiian reef fish that can grow to 15 inches in length. As with many Angelfish, Emperor juveniles are very different in appearance from their adults. Prior to 1933, young emperors were considered a separate species because of the wide variation in range of color and pattern in small to large specimens.
Juvenile Emperor Angelfish are dark blue with concentric electric blue and white rings. Adults have horizontal yellow and blue stripes, white snout with black around the eyes. It takes about 24 to 30 months for an Emperor Angelfish to acquire its adult coloring. They can be easily distinguished by the presence in angelfishes of a strong opercular spine.
Juveniles are encountered under ledges, or in holes of outer lagoon patch reefs or semi-protected areas of exposed channels and outer reef flats. Subadults move to reef front holes and surge channels. Large adults inhabit ledges and caves in areas of rich coral growth on clear lagoon, channel, or seaward reefs.
