A new report entitled: The State of North America’s Birds 2016, was published recently by the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI).
The first-of-its-kind report provides a comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of all bird species that occur in Canada, the continental United States, and Mexico.
The report shows that more than one third of all North American bird species need urgent conservation action and calls for a renewed, continent-wide commitment to saving our shared birds and their habitats.
More than half of the bird species in in ocean and tropical forest habitats are on the Watch List, which designates species that are most at risk of extinction without significant action.
Small and declining populations, small ranges, and severe threats to their habitats threaten species in these two habitats; for example, ocean pollution and invasive species on islands are problematic for ocean birds, while deforestation is a major challenge for tropical forest birds.
Steep population declines also threaten birds in coastal, aridland, and grassland habitats. In particular, long-distance migratory shorebirds and species that migrate from the Great Plains of Canada and the U.S. to Mexico’s Chihuahua grasslands have lost, on average, almost 70 per cent of their continental populations since 1970.
Despite the many challenges faced by North American birds, this report also shows that conservation works. Waterfowl and other waterbirds are benefiting from conservation efforts like the Duck Stamp program and the North American Waterfowl Management Plan.
The report evaluates the conservation status of all native North American bird species across all major habitats, including nine key ecosystems. It is based on the first-ever conservation vulnerability assessment for all 1,154 native bird species that occur in Canada, the continental U.S., and Mexico, and reflects a collaboration between experts from all three countries.
The overall conservation status of each species takes into account its population trend, population size, extent of breeding and nonbreeding ranges, and severity of threats to populations. Methodology information, the complete assessment database, animated maps, and other resources are available at stateofthebirds.org.
The full report is available at: www.stateofthebirds.org.
The North American Bird Conservation Initiative was created by Canada, the United States and Mexico as a tri-national commitment to protect birds and their habitats.
source: North American Bird Conservation Initiative