62 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. II, January, 1948 
period of quarantine is imposed to give some 
modicum of insurance against the introduction 
of diseases communicable to animals and man. 
No such provisions are present for avian impor¬ 
tations as evidenced by the recent arrival 
(March, 1947) and almost immediate release 
of a number of Mexican Buntings. Holding 
wild birds in custody might result in the loss of 
some individuals, but it would be preferable to 
subjecting native birds and already established 
exotic birds to the danger of unknown diseases. 
At the very least, representative fecal and blood 
smears should be made, and a few birds of each 
shipment should be sacrificed for autopsy and 
pathological study. It seems insufficent to allow 
the entry of birds on the basis of a clean bill of 
health as testified by the importer or by a 
veterinarian in the country of export. 
Except in one or two areas in these islands, 
the weather is never a major factor in decreas¬ 
ing already established populations. In other 
parts of the world, inclement winter weather 
conditions may act as a severe check, especially 
on small birds, by increasing greatly the mor¬ 
tality rates. 
The interaction of the exotics and the native 
flora and fauna is a matter of concern and is 
unpredictable. Not only this interaction but also 
that between the various exotic species estab¬ 
lished here should be investigated. One example 
may emphasize the significance of the interlock¬ 
ing activities of exotics in Hawaii. Lantana 
Camara was brought in as an ornamental plant. 
Mynahs (Acridotheres tristis) were imported 
especially to aid in controlling the army worm 
(.Laphygma exempta ). Various species of doves 
were established for sundry reasons. Lantana in 
its native Mexico is not a pest and mynahs and 
doves are not undesirable in their original 
homes. The individual importations of these 
three organisms seemed harmless. Each impor¬ 
tation was made for specific reasons, and each 
might not have been so detrimental had not 
the others also occurred. This is what happened 
in Hawaii. The mynah fed on army worms as 
was expected, but it also began to feed on 
lantana berries, so much so that correlative fluc¬ 
tuations in the abundance of berries and mynahs 
were observed. The army worm is now seem¬ 
ingly a secondary food item, subject to selection 
on the basis of relative abundance. Although 
doves may feed on lantana berries to only a 
limited extent, it is enough to have been a 
factor in spreading the seeds. The seeds pass 
through the digestive tract of birds and are 
viable. Experimentation with various other 
seeds has shown that viability is often actually 
increased by the passage of a seed through a 
bird. This might be true with lantana. It is 
known that other factors were of importance 
in spreading lantana, but in this review we are 
interested in birds primarily, and they did have 
a part in the dissemination of the seeds. As a 
result of all factors lantana spread widely and 
became one of the most noxious of plants in 
the Territory. To curb the spread of lantana 
certain insects were brought in. They were suc¬ 
cessful in part, but it is reported that in areas 
where the lantana was eradicated or greatly 
reduced another undesirable exotic plant took 
over. 
The result of establishing the mynah in Ha¬ 
waii is similar to that obtained in Fiji, as re¬ 
ported by Stoner (1923: 328-330). In Fiji 
the mynah was also imported to control in¬ 
jurious insects, but, as in Hawaii, it soon began 
eating more easily obtained foods, and, in addi¬ 
tion, was harmful to the native birds. There¬ 
fore, by 1923, the mynah was considered a pest 
and was no longer protected. One important 
aspect of Stoner’s observation was that the 
mynah in the Fijian area was heavily parasitized. 
It is also replete with parasites in Hawaii. Thus, 
there is the possibility that species already pres¬ 
ent in a region may be infected when the 
mynah is transplanted there, subject, of course, 
to the degree of host specificity of the parasites. 
Moreover, on the offshore bird islands of Oahu 
the author and his students have found the 
mynah pecking open the eggs of Sooty and 
Noddy Terns. 
