Description
About The Artwork ~ Daniel’s Story
“This piece is a representation of Hawaii’s endemic crow the ʻalalā. The ʻalalā are regarded as ʻaumākua or spiritual family guardians that delivered warnings to unforeseen events.
“In this drawing, you can see the moon cycles representing the passing of time along with the constellations of Hawaii in the sky. Here the ʻalalā is standing on top of its favorite tree, the hōʻawa. The hōʻawa provides food for many birds of Hawaii and its existence depends on these birds for seed dispersal. Next to the ʻalalā is its skeleton representing the inevitable story of all life but hopefully not the end of the species of the Hawaiian crow itself.
“Unfortunately the ʻalalā has been extinct from the wild since 2002. Past attempts to release the bird into the wild have failed due to habitat loss and avian malaria. The Hawaiian crow is currently preserved at Maui bird conservation centers with a plan to release them again one day in the wild.”
