Birdfinding.info ⇒ Common in Koke’e State Park and above, especially along the Pihea and Alakai Swamp Trails. It can also be found lower down in Waimea Canyon, and less reliably in the northern and eastern lowlands.
Kauai Elepaio
Monarcha sclateri
Endemic to Kauai, where it occurs in forests nearly throughout, but mostly above 500 m elevation.
Identification
A perky little flycatcher with a long tail that it habitually cocks. Adult plumage is mostly gray above and whitish below, with an orangish flush on the chest.
The orange coloration varies in intensity and extent. It can be a muted wash limited to the chest, whereas on some individuals it is vivid and extends up to the throat, face, and neck, and covers the whole chest and sides (similar to the pattern of a European Robin).
The wings are dark-gray with two or three white wingbars.
The tail is dark with a prominent white rump, white tips, and white outer edges when spread.
Kauai Elepaio, much grayer than average. (Alakai Swamp Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; February 6, 2015.) © Jordan Roderick
Kauai Elepaio. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; April 15, 2019.) © Jen Sanford
Kauai Elepaio. (Alakai Swamp Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; June 25, 2017.) © George Gibbs
Kauai Elepaio, at the far drab end of the spectrum. (Alaka’i Wilderness Preserve, Kauai, Hawaii; March 8, 2019.) © Joachim Bertrands
Kauai Elepaio. (Koke’e State Park, Kauai, Hawaii; March 29, 2016.) © Dan Murphy
Kauai Elepaio. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; July 12, 2018.) © Timo Mitzen
Kauai Elepaio. (Kauai, Hawaii; August 16, 2006.) © Jim Denny
Kauai Elepaio. (Alaka’i Wilderness Preserve, Kauai, Hawaii; March 7, 2019.) © Joachim Bertrands
Kauai Elepaio. (Alakai Swamp Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; June 25, 2017.) © George Gibbs
Kauai Elepaio, at the pale end of the spectrum. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; March 20, 2019.) © Christopher Burney
Kauai Elepaio. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; July 12, 2018.) © Timo Mitzen
Kauai Elepaio. (Alakai Swamp Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; June 25, 2017.) © George Gibbs
Kauai Elepaio. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; April 15, 2019.) © Jen Sanford
Kauai Elepaio. (Alaka’i Wilderness Preserve, Kauai, Hawaii; March 8, 2019.) © Joachim Bertrands
Kauai Elepaio. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; February 17, 2020.) © Daniele Mitchell
Kauai Elepaio. (Koke’e State Park, Kauai, Hawaii; November 23, 2015.) © Dubi Shapiro
Kauai Elepaio. (Alaka’i Wilderness Preserve, Kauai, Hawaii; March 6, 2019.) © Joachim Bertrands
Kauai Elepaio, entering adult plumage. (Halepa’akai Stream, Alakai Wilderness Preserve, Kauai, Hawaii; May 22, 2006.) © Eric VanderWerf
Kauai Elepaio, immature. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; July 12, 2018.) © Timo Mitzen
Immature plumage is mostly rusty. As they mature their plumage shifts toward adult coloration in stages.
Kauai Elepaio, immature. (Pihea Trail, Kauai, Hawaii; July 12, 2018.) © Timo Mitzen
Kauai Elepaio, entering adult plumage. (Kauai, Hawaii; April 16, 2009.) © th3y1s
Notes
Monotypic species.
IUCN Red List Status: Vulnerable.
References
BirdLife International. 2018. Chasiempis sclateri (amended version of 2016 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22736432A122918684. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22736432A122918684.en. (Accessed July 2, 2020.)
del Hoyo, J., N. Collar, and J.S. Marks. 2020. Kauai Elepaio (Chasiempis sclateri). In Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D.A. Christie, and E. de Juana, eds.). Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. https://www.hbw.com/node/1343826. (Accessed May 10, 2020.)
eBird. 2020. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, N.Y. http://www.ebird.org. (Accessed July 2, 2020.)
Pratt, H.D., P.L. Bruner, and D.G. Berrett. 1987. A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific. Princeton University Press.
Pratt, H.D. 1993. Enjoying Birds in Hawaii: A Birdfinding Guide to the Fiftieth State (Second Edition). Mutual Publishing, Honolulu, Hawaii.
Pyle, R.L., and P. Pyle. 2017. The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands: Occurrence, History, Distribution, and Status. Version 2 (January 1, 2017). http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/birds/rlp-monograph/. B.P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii.
Xeno-Canto. 2020. Kauai Elepaio – Chasiempis sclateri. https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Chasiempis-sclateri. (Accessed July 2, 2020.)