The Laysan duck, also known as the Laysan teal, is a dabbling duck endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Fossil evidence reveals that Laysan ducks once lived across the entire archipelago, but today survive only on Laysan Island and two atolls. The duck has several physical and behavioral traits linked to the absence of ground-based predators in its habitat. By 1860, the ducks had disappeared from everywhere except Laysan Island. The introduction of European rabbits by guano miners at the end of the 19th century brought the bird to the brink of extinction in 1912, with twelve surviving individuals. Rabbits were eradicated from the island in 1923 and numbers of Laysan ducks began to rise, reaching 500 by the 1950s. In an effort to ensure the long-term future of this duck, 42 birds were translocated to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in 2002. These thrived in their new surroundings, and another group were later relocated to Kure Atoll.
Laysan, located 808 nautical miles northwest of Honolulu at 25°42′14″N171°44′04″W, is one of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. It comprises one land mass of 1,016 acres (4.11 km2), about 1 by 1+1⁄2 miles in size. It is an atoll of sorts, although the land completely surrounds a shallow central lake some 2.4 m (7.9 ft) above sea level that has a salinity approximately three times greater than the ocean. Laysan's Hawaiian name, Kauō, means egg.
The Laysan finch is a species of Hawaiian honeycreeper, that is endemic to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. It is one of four remaining finch-billed Hawaiian honeycreepers and is closely related to the smaller Nihoa finch. The Laysan finch is named for Laysan, the island to which it was endemic on its discovery. It was subsequently introduced to a few other atolls, and its historical range included some of the main islands.
The Laysan millerbird was a subspecies of the millerbird, similar in appearance to the remaining subspecies, the Nihoa millerbird. Its dorsal side was brown, and its belly was grayish. Its name derives from its favorite food, several species of moths of the genus Agrotis commonly referred to as "millers".
Agrotis is a genus of moths of the family Noctuidae. The genus was erected by Ferdinand Ochsenheimer in 1816. A number of the species of this genus are extinct.
The poko noctuid moth is a moth in the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1881.
Kerr's noctuid moth is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae.
The Procellaris Agrotis noctuid moth is a species of moth in the family Erebidae.
The Laysan dropseed noctuid moth was a species of moth in the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Otto Herman Swezey in 1914. This species is now extinct.
The Laysan hedyleptan moth is a species of moth in the family Crambidae. It is endemic to Laysan in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
Oodemas laysanensis, the Laysan weevil, was a species of beetle in family Curculionidae. It was endemic to the United States.
The Laysan honeycreeper or Laysan ʻapapane is an extinct bird species that was endemic to the island of Laysan in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
Hyposmocoma laysanensis is a species of moth of the family Cosmopterigidae. It is endemic to Laysan. The type locality is Guano Rock.
Hyposmocoma laysanensis is a species of moth of the family Cosmopterigidae. It is endemic to Laysan. The type locality is Guano Rock.
Agrotis evanescens is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It was first described by Walter Rothschild in 1894. It is endemic to the Hawaiian island of Laysan.
Eragrostis variabilis is a species of grass known by the common names variable lovegrass, kawelu, emoloa, and kalamalo. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it occurs on all the main islands plus Kure Atoll, Midway Atoll, Pearl and Hermes Atoll, Lisianski Island, Laysan, and Nihoa.
The Northwestern Hawaii scrub is a tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ecoregion on the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean.
