Oʻahu nukupuʻu bill to pluck insects found underneath tree bark, the Oahu nukupuu fed on insects on flowering trees such as the koa ("Acacia koa") and ohia ("Metrosideros polymorpha"). These trees attract a large amount of insects due to their nectar-filled flowers. The Oahu nukupuu fed on koa in high elevation forests and fed on ohia in low elevations. The species was believed to have vanished as the spread of disease occurred, killing off nukupuu populations across the islands. In order to control the rat population in the sugar cane fields, mongooses were introduced to Hawaii and were suspected to be predators
Wahiawa Botanical Garden The property was transferred to Honolulu in 1950, and opened as a botanical garden in 1957. It is open seven days a week, from 9am to 4 pm. The Garden's collections include: Blue Ginger ("Dichorisandra thyrsiflora"), Hāpuu ii ("Cibotium chamissoi"), Koa ("Acacia koa"), Blue Jacaranda ("Jacaranda mimosifolia"), "Nageia nagi", "Angiopteris evecta", Shaving Brush Tree ("Pseudobombax ellipticum"), Autograph Tree ("Clusia rosea"), Nutmeg ("Myristica fragrans"), Allspice ("Pimenta dioica"), Travellers' Palm ("Ravenala madagascariensis"), "Chrysophyllum oliviforme", Common Screwpine ("Pandanus utilis"), "Parkia javanica", Guanacaste ("Enterolobium cyclocarpum"), Candle Tree ("Parmentiera cereifera"), Elephant Apple ("Dillenia indica"), Moreton Bay Fig ("Ficus macrophylla"), Queensland Kauri ("Agathis robusta"), "Brownea macrophylla",