Eight endangered Hawaiian ducks hatched over the weekend in a Kahalu'u wetland apparently have died.

Robert Cappella, a farmer and Kahalu'u Neighborhood Board member, said the koloa chicks were hatched Saturday, but haven't been seen since. He suspects they were eaten by egrets that also live in the wetland on the makai side of Kamehameha Highway.

"Once you don't see them, you know they're dead," Cappella said.

The wetland, established about six years ago on city property, attracts a number of endangered species that are at risk from natural predators as well as passing highway traffic, he said.