‘Bird Emergency:’ Big Population Declines In US, Including NC

NORTH CAROLINA — The National Audubon Society has declared a “bird emergency” after a recent study found that the United States and Canada have lost a combined total of 2.9 billion birds since 1970 — a 29 percent decrease in the bird population over a 50-year period.

Just 12 bird families, including warblers, sparrows, blackbirds and finches, made up more than 90 percent of the total losses, according to the study published in “Science.” Additionally, birds that make grasslands their home had the largest population loss with more than 700 million breeding birds across 31 different species disappearing over the course of the last five decades.

Along with grasslands, bird loss in the United States was quantified in the study across three other terrains: western forest, aridlands and eastern forest, which North Carolina falls and where the bird population declined by almost 20 percent since 1970.

The study’s authors noted that the population loss was not restricted to rare or threatened bird species but includes many widespread and common species. These common birds, the authors write, may be disproportionately influential components of food webs and ecosystem function.

Not all bird populations are shrinking. For example, bluebirds are increasing, mostly because people have worked hard to get their numbers up.

In an interview with the National Audubon Society, the study’s lead author, Ken Rosenberg, said that there wasn’t one factor accounting for the large losses.

“Multiple, complex environmental factors including pesticide use, insect declines, and climate change, as well as direct threats like outdoor cats and glass skyscrapers, are also hitting birds from a range of angles,” the Audubon Society wrote in its report on the study. “For migratory species, long journeys and changes to winter habitats could pose additional challenges.”

To understand the change in the bird population, the study evaluated population change for 529 species in the continental U.S. and Canada or 76 percent of all breeding-bird species. In conclusion, the study’s authors wrote that the results show an urgent need to address the threats endangering birds.

“The connection between birds and humans is undeniable — we share the same fate,” David Yarnold, president and CEO of the National Audubon Society, said in a statement. “This is a bird emergency with a clear message: the natural world humans depend on is being paved, logged, eroded and polluted. You don’t need to look hard for the metaphor: birds are the canaries in the coal mine that is the earth’s future.

“Since the 1970’s, we’ve lost three billion of America’s birds. This is a full-blown crisis that requires political leadership as well as mass individual action. We have to act now to protect the places we know birds rely on. Places like the Arctic Refuge, Great Lakes, Everglades, and Colorado River must be a priority. From the newest Audubon members to the most tenured Senators, we all can act today to protect birds and the places they need.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.