Introduced mosquitoes and other animals to Maui contributed to the declining population, and the bird is considered Critically Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

The latest reported sighting of this bird was in 1988, and in 2021 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service proposed declaring it extinct.

Like many birds in the area, its condition as a species began to deteriorate as new plants replaced those that it was familiar with.

The upper elevations began to be filled with unusual plants and animals which destroyed the habitat.

In 1988, only one was sighted when a party went on a research trip to study birds that are found in Maui's Hanawi Reserve.