Greater Amakihi
Extinct circa 1901 CE • Hawaii
"Almost always, the birds were seen creeping along the branches of ohia trees or in the foliage that grew upon them. They seemed particularly fond of certain kinds of cricket that could be found on these trees, but caterpillars, spiders and beetles all formed part of the diet . . . That the greater amakihi will almost certainly never be seen again is an idea underscored by Dean Amadon (1950) who reported that its forest home is long gone - even then the area was covered with sugar cane."
Errol Fuller, Extinct Birds (Ithaca, NY: Comstock Pub., 2001), 347-348.
Image: Viridonia sagittirostris, John Gerrard Keulemans, from Avifauna of Laysan By Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, 1893--1900.
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