palila

[puh-lee-luh]

noun

1. a stout Hawaiian honeycreeper, Loxioides bailleui, having a thick, stubby bill, yellow head and breast, and gray back: an endangered species.

Word History and Origins

Origin of palila¹

From Hawaiian

Example Sentences

The Puu Mali Forest Carbon Project on the north slope of Mauna Kea calls for planting native trees such as koa and mamane, restoring watershed lands and enhancing the natural habitat of the endangered palila bird.

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Building the TMT elsewhere, as some opponents have suggested, would be like clipping the wings of Mauna Kea's indigenous palila bird, limiting its ability to soar.

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Building the TMT elsewhere, as some opponents have suggested, would be like clipping the wings of Mauna Kea’s indigenous palila bird, limiting its ability to soar.

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A century ago Palila habitat included most of the volcano as well as large areas of the western half of the island but today they live in just 5 percent of that range.

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“Because the species is now restricted to the southwestern slope of Mauna Kea Volcano, which has a relatively extensive system of dirt roads, it is possible to probe most areas of the palila’s range during a day’s outing , although that does not guarantee that you will see one without a good deal of hiking,” he says.

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