Ultramarine lorikeet

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Ultramarine lorikeet
The Loriidae - Plate XXVII.jpg
Vini ultramarina (below), with Vini peruviana
CITES Appendix I (CITES) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittaculidae
Genus: Vini
Species:
V. ultramarina
Binomial name
Vini ultramarina
(Kuhl, 1820)

The ultramarine lorikeet (Vini ultramarina) is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae, endemic to the Marquesas Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest and plantations. It is critically endangered, threatened mainly by introduction of the black rat and by deforestation.

Contents

Distribution and Population

During the 1970s, the bird was still prevalent on its natural range of Fatu Hiva, Ua Pou, Nuku Hiva, and Ua Huka in the Marquesas Islands. However, due to heavy deforestation and predation by the invasive black rat and cat, the ultramarine lorikeet became extinct on Fatu Hiva, Ua Pu, and Nuku Hiva by 2008. Nowadays, the rare bird only remains on Ua Huka. On Ua Huka, the population is estimated to be at about 1,000-2,499 individual birds.

Vini ultramarina - Ua Huka - Hane - Marquesas Islands Vini Ultramarina - Ua Huka - Hane - Marquesas Islands.jpg
Vini ultramarina - Ua Huka - Hane - Marquesas Islands

Ecology

Vini ultramarina feeds on a large variety of nectar, pollen, and flowers from various flowering trees. It seems to prefer flowers of the coconut palm and Hibiscus tilliaceus. The bird's diet also includes multiple fruits and insects. The ultramarine lorikeet nests in tree cavities, especially in Artocarpus altilis, Pometia pinnata, Pandanus tectorius, and Hibiscus tilliaceus. Little else is little known about this rare species.

Threats

The ultramarine lorikeet is greatly threatened by the predation from the black rat which has greatly decreased its population since its introduction to Nuku Hiva in 1915. All islands have been devastated by extremely high levels of grazing and fire. Most of the original dry forest has been reduced to grassland, and terrible damage has been caused to upland forests as well. Deforestation to make way for farms, logging, and tourism has also had large impact in the decline of its population.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marquesas Islands</span> Archipelago in French Polynesia

The Marquesas Islands are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. Their highest point is the peak of Mount Oave on Ua Pou island, at 1,230 m (4,035 ft) above sea level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fatu-Hiva</span> Commune in French Polynesia, France

Fatu-Hiva is the southernmost island of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. With Motu Nao as its closest neighbour, it is also the most isolated of the inhabited islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ua Huka</span> Island in French Polynesia

Ua Huka is one of the Marquesas Islands, in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is situated in the northern group of the archipelago, approximately 25 mi (40 km) to the east of Nuku Hiva, at 8°54′S139°33′W.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conquered lorikeet</span> Extinct species of bird

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Meek's lorikeet is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is found on Bougainville Island in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. It is threatened by habitat loss.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-chinned lorikeet</span> Species of bird

The red-chinned lorikeet is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is native to New Britain, New Ireland, New Hannover and Karkar Island in Papua New Guinea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kuhl's lorikeet</span> Species of bird

Kuhl's lorikeet (Vini kuhlii), also called the Rimitara lorikeet, Kuhl's lory, Manu 'Ura (local appellation) or Kura (Cook Islands), is a species of lorikeet in the family Psittaculidae. It is one of several species of Vini lorikeets found in islands ranging across the South Pacific. The Kuhl for whom Nicholas Aylward Vigors named the bird in 1824 was Heinrich Kuhl, a German ornithologist whose survey of the parrots, Conspectus psittacorum, had appeared in 1819.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen's lorikeet</span> Species of bird

Stephen's lorikeet, also known as the Henderson lorikeet or the Henderson Island Lorikeet, is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to Henderson Island in the Pitcairn Islands of the South Pacific.

<i>Pomarea</i> Genus of birds

Pomarea is a genus of birds in the monarch flycatcher family Monarchidae. The genus is restricted to the islands of Polynesia. The monarchs of this genus are around 15–19 cm long and most have sexually dimorphic plumage.

The Iphis monarch, or Ua Huka flycatcher, is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to French Polynesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, and plantations.

The Marquesan monarch is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to French Polynesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. It is threatened by habitat loss.

The Nuku Hiva monarch, or Nukuhiva flycatcher, was a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It was endemic to French Polynesia. Its natural habitats were subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, and heavily degraded former forest. It became extinct due to habitat loss and introduced predators. The last confirmed sighting was in the 1930s and a possible sighting was reported in 1975.

Glochidion marchionicum is a species of tree in the family Phyllanthaceae. It is endemic to the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, where it grows on the islands of Nuku Hiva, Ua Pou, Ua Huka, Hiva Oa, Tahuata, and Fatu Hiva, in a variety of habitats.

<i>Dryopteris macropholis</i> Species of fern

Dryopteris macropholis is a species of fern. It is distributed on the Marquesas Islands.

Libythea collenettei, the Marquesan snout butterfly, is a species of Nymphalid butterfly in the subfamily Libytheinae. The species was first described by Edward Bagnall Poulton and Norman Denbigh Riley in 1923. The specific name honours its original collector, Cyril Leslie Collenette, a member of the 1925 St George Expedition to French Polynesia. It is endemic to French Polynesia, L. collenettei is the only species of butterfly endemic to the Marquesas Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marquesas tropical moist forests</span>

The Marquesas tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia.

<i>Pterophylla marquesana</i> Species of flowering plant

Pterophylla marquesana, formerly known as Weinmannia marquesana, is a species of plant in the family Cunoniaceae. It is a shrub or tree endemic to the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2018). "Vini ultramarina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22684647A132055913. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22684647A132055913.en . Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  2. "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 14 January 2022.