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Hawaiian Duck Koloa By Riona Koloa's Description The Koloa is a brown duck with white borders. The adults have darker neck feathers than the ducklings. The male sometimes have brighter colors to attract a mate, sometimes green. Both female and male have orange legs and feet, but females tend to have a duller orange. The male duck's length measures 19 to 20 inches and the female is 16 to 17 inches. The largest number of wild koloa is found in Kauai. The scientific name for the Koloa is Anas wyvilliana. Habitat and Behavior The ducks or Koloa can be found in lowland wetlands, river valleys, mountain streams, flooded grasslands and freshwater. They eat mollusks and insects. Since the
nests are built on land, the ducks are easy prey for mongoose, cat, pig, and dog attacks. The ducklings are sometimes eaten by bullfrogs and bass. The ducks eat duckweed, and dried cracked corn, if in captivity. Mating They can begin breeding at one year old and nest year-round, but the main breeding season is between January and May. Two to ten eggs are laid in a nest with down feathers. The period of hatching is 30 days. When koloa travel, they usually travel in pairs. Past and present In 1915, the population of the Koloa was about 2,000 ducks on the islands of Kauai and Ni’ihau. The numbers were much smaller on other islands, 300 on O’ahu, 25 on Maui, and 200 on Hawai’i island.
Bibliography "Hawaiian duck (Anas wyvilliana)." ARKive. Wildscreen, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014. <http://www.arkive.org/hawaiianduck/anaswyvilliana/>. Island, Baker, Jarvis Island, Howland Island, and Reef Kingman. "Hawaiian duck Koloa Maoli." Civil Beat. N.p., 20 Sept. 2012. Web. 5 May 2014. <http://www.fws.gov/pacificislands/fauna/HIduck.html>. Stiver, Harold. "Koloa Maoli, Hawaiian Duck, Anas wyvilliana." Nature Notes. n.p., 12 Oct. 2012. Web. 1 May 2014. <http://www.ontfin.com/Word/koloamaolihawaiianduckanaswyvilliana/>.