Is the Poo-Uli a Hawaiian Honeycreeper (Drepanidinae)?

Abstract

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. . University of California Press and Cooper Ornithological Society are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Condor. Abstract. The Poo-uli (Melamprosops phaeosoma), discovered on Maui in 1973, was originally believed to be a Hawaiian honeycreeper (Drepanidinae). Doubts as to the validity of this classification prompted an investigation of the defining characters of the subfamily and the possible position of M. phaeosoma within it. The Drepanidinae are monophyletic with a suite of certain and possible synapomorphies that cluster the group, but Melamprosops lacks all of these characters. Hawaiian honeycreepers have a distinctive odor which the Poouli lacks. Its tongue has prominent rearward projections whereas drepanidine tongues lack "lingual wings." Most drepanidines lack the usual passerine predator-response behaviors but M. phaeosoma exhibits them. Vocalizations of the Poo-uli do not resemble those of any of the three vocal groupings of Hawaiian honeycreepers. The color pattern of M. phaeosoma is unique among native Hawaiian birds. Phenotypic characters thus provide no basis for inclusion of Melamprosops in the Drepanidinae; its relationships are unknown.

Notes on the natural history, taxonomy, and conservation of the endemic avifauna of the Samoan Archipelago

“…Had it been louder, the song would resemble those of American Mimidae, to which starlings are related Ahlquist 1984, Jetz et al 2012). It is also very similar to whisper songs of some Hawaiian honeycreepers, which likewise include mimicry (Pratt 2005(Pratt , 2009). The first recorded song bout lasted ,3.5 mins.…”

Cranial shape evolution in adaptive radiations of birds: comparative morphometrics of Darwin's finches and Hawaiian honeycreepers

“…Molecular phylogenies [4,17] indicate that the ancestral species of Darwin's finches likely colonized the Galápagos Islands between 4 and 2.5 Ma. The Hawaiian honeycreepers are representatives of the true finches (Fringillidae) that are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands [15] and comprise 18 extant species (including the recently extinct poo-uli) and over 30 extinct species [13,18] (figure 1). A recent molecular phylogenetic study proposed that they are closely related to Eurasian rosefinches ( Carpodacus ) (figure 1) and the ancestral colonists arrived in Hawaii from Eastern Asia around 8–6 Myr with the earliest divergence within the honeycreeper clade dated to around 6–5 Ma [12].…”

“…The phylogenetic position of each extinct species (indicated by †) was determined by considering its position in the osteology-based phylogeny in [13]. Information about the main diet of each species was taken from [14], except for diet information about extinct Hawaiian honeycreepers, which was derived from [15]. Diet of the species that eat two types of food belonging to distinct categories approximately equally is shown with two colours.…”

“…Diet of the species that eat two types of food belonging to distinct categories approximately equally is shown with two colours. Illustrations of the head of each bird species were derived from [14], except for those of extinct Hawaiian honeycreeper species that were derived from [15] with the author's permission. Pictures of the skulls of three extinct Hawaiian honeycreeper species were taken by Caitlin Price.…”

Fifty-sixth Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union:Check-list of North American Birds

“…Numbers adjacent to nodes indicate time (Ma) of divergence given by Lerner et al (2011). Capital letters indicate where key synapomorphies first appeared: A) flat cranial floor and associated anatomical features (James 2004); B) loss of backward-projecting "lingual wings" (Pratt 1979(Pratt , 1992a; C) "drepanidine odor" (Perkins 1903;Pratt 1992a, b); D) drepanidine tubular tongue (Raikow 1977;Pratt 1979, James 2004); E) simple short primary songs, complex whisper songs (Pratt 2005); F) complex but not canary-like primary songs with metallic, reedy, and dissonant notes (Pratt 2005).other checklists, including the IOC World Bird List (Gill & Donsker 2014) and the upcoming revised edition of the Howard & Moore world checklist (Dickinson 2003; E. C. Dickinson, pers. comm.…”