 This bird has had many names including Molokai mamo, o’o nuku’umu, which meant "o’o with sucking beak", and Perkins's mamo, after ornithologist R.C.L Perkins who produced most of the information about this species.By habit an understory bird, it was affected by the introduction of cattle and deer which destroyed much of its habitat, as well as direct and egg predation by introduced rats and mongooses.It was discovered in 1893 in the Pelekuna Valley, and named "Drepanis funerea" by Perkins because it appeared to him to be a dark mourning bird.