Rhodacanthis forfex James & Olson, 2005:533
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Rhodacanthis sp. Burnley, 2001:628; Rhodacanthis aff. palmeri James, 2004:241
Conservation Status
Extinct
Distribution & Habitat
Kauai and Maui, Hawaiian Islands, USA
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Holotype: USNM 524870 ("nearly complete cranium with disarticulated maxilla")
Type locality: Island of Kauai: Koloa Quadrangle: Makauwahi Cave (21∞53¢30≤N, 159∞25¢17≤W, near sea level).
Paratypes:
USNM 524871
USNM 445792
Media
References
Original scientific description:
James, Helen F. and Olson, Storrs L. (2005). The diversity and biogeography of koa-finches (Drepanidini: Rhodacanthis), with descriptions of two new species. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 144: 527–541, 6 figs.
Other references:
Burney, David A. et al. (2001). Fossil evidence for a diverse biota from Kaua'i and its transformation since human arrival. Ecological Monographs 71(4): 615-641.
Faurby, Søren, Matthews, Tom J., Triantis, Kostas A. and Sayol, Ferran. (2026). Quantifying the unrecorded loss of avian phylogenetic diversity. Ecography 2026: e08267. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecog.08267
James, Helen F. (2004). The osteology and phylogeny of the Hawaiian finch radiation (Fringillidae: Drepanidini), including extinct taxa. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 141: 207-255, 17 figs.
James, Helen F. and Price, J. P. (2008). Integration of palaeontological, historical, and geographical data on the extinction of koa-finches. Diversity and Distributions 14(3): 441-451.
Matthews, Thomas J., Triantis, Kostas A., Wayman, Joseph P., Martin, Thomas E., Hume, Julian P., Cardoso, Pedro, Faurby, Søren, Mendenhall, Chase D., Dufour, Paul, Rigal, François, Cooke, Rob, Whittaker, Robert J., Pigot, Alex L., Thébaud, Christophe, Jørgensen, Maria Wagner, Benavides, Eva, Soares, Filipa C., Ulrich, Werner, Kubota, Yasuhiro, Sadler, Jon P., Tobias, Joseph A. and Sayol, Ferran. (2024). The global loss of avian functional and phylogenetic diversity from anthropogenic extinctions. Science 386(6717): 55-60. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adk7898 [Supplementary Materials; Dryad dataset; Zenodo codeset]
Matthews, Thomas J., Wayman, Joseph P., Cardoso, Pedro, Sayol, Ferran, Hume, Julian P., Ulrich, Werner, Tobias, Joseph A., Soares, Filipa C., Thébaud, Christophe, Martin, Thomas E. and Triantis, Kostas A. (2022). Threatened and extinct island endemic birds of the world: Distribution, threats and functional diversity. Journal of Biogeography 49(11): 1920-1940. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14474 [Appendix S1 (.docx); Appendix S2 (.pdf)]
Sayol, Ferran, Steinbauer, Manuel J., Blackburn, Tim M., Antonelli, Alexandre and Faurby, Søren. (2020). Anthropogenic extinctions conceal widespread evolution of flightlessness in birds. Science Advances 6(49): eabb6095. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abb6095 [Supplementary Material (Data File S1)]
Tyrberg, Tommy. (2009). Holocene avian extinctions, pp. 63-106. In: Turvey, Samuel T. (ed.). Holocene Extinctions. Oxford, UK & New York, USA: Oxford University Press. xii + 352 pp.