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View count:	249
Likes:	57
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Duration:	10:23
Uploaded:	2026-06-10
Last sync:	2026-06-10 16:15

The ‘akikiki is a Hawaiian honeycreeper that has vanished from the the island of Kaua’i, the victims of avian malaria carried by invasive mosquitos. The birds now only live in captivity, with the goal of one day being released back into a wilderness. And, strangely enough, the solution to the current mosquito problem might actually be breeding more mosquitos.



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Endlings portrait illustrations are by Zoe Keller. You can find out more about her and her work here: https://www.zoekeller.com/



San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance: https://sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org/

Find out more about the National Geographic Photo Ark here: https://www.joelsartore.com/



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Sources:

https://www.facebook.com/KauaiForestBirds/videos/26669503505973937/

https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/blog/2024/07/01/nr24-80/

https://www.instagram.com/p/DI4zFECTpNu/?img_index=3

https://www.birdsnotmosquitoes.org/akikiki

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https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.1600029

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https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/wildlife/birds/akikiki/

https://kauaiforestbirds.org/blessing-the-birds-critical-to-saving-kauais-forest-birds/

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https://www.cdc.gov/mosquitoes/mosquito-control/mosquitoes-with-wolbachia.html

https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(20)31229-X



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Images:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1m6ya2H-LoVLjoKLQ9v7KNvBHHTCsu3KtSdQr-nebOFY/edit?usp=sharing