One in eight bird species is threatened with extinction, but what are the main factors driving their decline? Continue reading this article to learn about the different endangered birds, most important causes for their extinction and what is being done to combat them.
What are the endangered birds around the world?
There are about 20.000 species of birds in the world, many of which are in danger of disappearing. Of those bird species, estimates predict that about 13% are in extreme contingency. Below is a list of birds in danger of extinction.
Helm Hornbill
Hornbills are among the most charismatic birds in the world; their size, prominent bill, occasionally elaborate headdresses, and generally noisy behavior make them conspicuous wherever they are located. The helmeted hornbill is possibly the most extraordinary of the forest hornbills in Asia.
Its visual appearance, characterized by bizarre facial features and disproportionately long central tail feathers, is striking enough, but this bird is heard more often than seen and is famous for its unique and captivating call.
The presence of Asian hornbills is generally a reliable indicator of the health of a forest. Helmeted hornbills, in particular, show a marked preference for pristine lowland rainforest with an abundant supply of fruit trees. They are confined to suitable forest habitat in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand. Unfortunately, their number of specimens has plummeted in recent years.
crowned crane
These are as majestic birds as their name suggests. One of 15 species of these birds is long-legged, with ashen bodies, pale wings with chestnut and gold feathers, white faces, and radiant scarlet sacs under their chins. Most amazingly, a spray of stiff golden feathers forms a crown around their heads. In addition, the black-crowned species are also included, they are the oldest and predate their relatives by tens of millions of years.
Atlantic Puffin
Medium-sized coastal bird, robust, with a short neck, large head and large triangular beak. It stands upright on land and floats high in the water. The bill grows and becomes more grooved as the bird ages. These birds have fairly short, straight wings and fly with constant, rapid beats.
Bearded Vulture
Unique among North American raptors for its diet of live fish and its ability to dive into the water to catch them. These birds are frequently seen soaring over shorelines, patrolling waterways and perching on their huge stick nests, their heads gleaming white. These large, spindly falcons are well adapted to humans and have rebounded in numbers following the pesticide ban.
shoebill
Also called the whale-headed stork, the large African wader is named for its clog-like beak, which is an adaptation for catching and holding the large, slippery lungfish, its favorite meal. This large bird also eats turtles, fish, and young crocodiles. The shoe spikes are about 115 cm high. They are completely gray, with wide wings and long legs. The head is large in proportion to the body and the eyes are also exceptionally large.
The shoebill strikes the mandibles of its beak like a display, producing a loud, hollow sound. Like herons and pelicans, shoebills fly with their heads resting against their bodies.
cantabrian capercaillie
This unique bird lives at the southern end of the range of the gallinaceous bird family, in entirely temperate forests. There is very little information on the specific habitat requirements of these birds, as well as their nests, although reproductive success appears to be a limiting factor.
Galapagos Penguin
This is a species of penguin characterized by the presence of a narrow C-shaped band of white feathers extending from the eye to the chin on each side of the head and a single band of jet feathers running through the large feather region. chest whites.
Galapagos penguins, the northernmost of all penguin species, inhabit the western part of the Galapagos Islands; however, some people may occasionally venture to other islands in the archipelago. Compared to other species of endangered penguins, this population is small, with no more than a few thousand individuals.
african penguin
This is a group of birds characterized by a single strip of their jet-black plumage that runs across the chest and a circle of bare skin that completely surrounds each eye. It is given this name because this bird occupies various areas along the coasts of Namibia and South Africa. This bird grows about 69 cm on average and weighs between 2 and 5 kilos. It features a pattern of unique black dots on its chest, as well as pink glands above its eyes that get pinker as the penguin gets hotter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaY3maFcxhA
Arica Hummingbird
At the beginning of this millennium, a number of 1.500 species were registered, however, today this bird is already extinct in the Valley and has been isolated more than 30 kilometers to the north of Chile and the population of these is in a serious situation and leads this species to the total disappearance. Today after 17 years, according to the last census, the total number of species is 317, which places the smallest bird in Chile in danger of extinction.
Quetzal
These birds are found from southern Mexico to Bolivia. The resplendent quetzal and the golden-headed quetzal are the only species found in Central America. The resplendent quetzal was the sacred bird of the ancient Mayans and Aztecs. The resplendent quetzal's long blue-green feathers cover its tail, which shows white below, in flight.
Its head, with a rounded hair-like crest, and the upper part of its chest are golden green. The bird's back is blue with a gold-tinted mantle and its belly is red.
kakapo
This is an endangered bird, unique to Oceania. Like many birds that inhabit transatlantic cays, this bird is also unable to fly. Preservation efforts began in the aforementioned country more than 100 years ago. Those efforts only had some triumph. Unfortunately, there were only 132 individuals left in the wild in 2019.
takahe
It is a rare flightless bird from Oceania that was thought to be extinct in the late XNUMXth century, but was rediscovered in the late XNUMXs in several remote valleys of the South Island. It is a colorful specimen with bright blue and coppery-green plumage and a large red bill, surmounted by a red frontal shield protruding from the forehead.
This bird feeds by removing the seeds of grasses. The nest is placed on the ground and two cream-colored eggs with brown spots are laid. The young are black and hairy.
Blue macaw
The striking blue macaw, friendly, frank and very intelligent. They are known for being vibrant, lively and incredibly social within their herds. They prefer to do everything as a couple and are very loyal to their partners. Blue Macaws are gentle in nature and are rarely agitated. They are found in southern Brazil, eastern Bolivia and northeastern Paraguay, as well as part of the Amazon jungle.
scarlet macaw
This bird ranges in size from 80 to 100 centimeters long and is primarily red, as its name implies, with a yellow band down the center of the wings, followed by a blue band leading to the flight feathers. In some birds, there may be a greenish stripe where amber meets blue.
The scarlet macaw, due to its beauty, has been depleted in the wild, although efforts are being made in Costa Rica and other countries to help save current populations or repopulate area previously occupied by these birds.
ground cuckoo
It is any of the 15 species of birds that make up the subfamily Neomorphinae, known for their terrestrial habits. Of the 11 New World species, three, the striped cuckoo, the pheasant cuckoo, and the Pavonine cuckoo, are reproductive parasites that lay their eggs in the nests of other birds.
akohekohe
This bird has a distinctive white crest that extends forward which gives the bird its translated name. The conspicuous crest helps pollinate native plants as the bird moves from flower to flower while feeding.
Threats to this unique honeycreeper include habitat destruction by human settlers, goats, and sheep; predation by cats, rats, mongooses and Owl and mosquito-borne diseases, which have devastated native bird populations. Historically, the unusual appearance of the Akohekohe also made it desirable to collectors.
Philippine Eagle
These rare eagles have been pushed to the brink of extinction by deforestation, shooting, and other human activities. In the 1970s, just a few years after the formation of the Peregrine Fund, he began helping and advising on conservation measures for the Philippine Eagle. His commitment to help protect this species continues to this day. The best way to do this is to provide support and assistance to the foundation dealing with its preservation.
This organization has bred Philippine Eagles through captive breeding and has reintroduced some individuals to the remaining patches of suitable habitat. The foundation released the first captive-bred eagle into the wild in 2004 and has since released several rehabilitated birds. Education in local communities and working with them to develop community conservation of critical habitat is also helping to protect this species.
Egyptian vulture
Also called pharaoh's chicken, it is a small Old World vulture about 60 cm long. It is white in color with black flight feathers, a bare face, and a cascading mane of feathers. The range of this vulture is North and East Africa, southern Europe, and the Middle East to Afghanistan and India.
Yellow Cardinal
This is a bird that is characterized, as its name indicates, by having quite striking yellow plumage. The yellow cardinal its distinctive character is a prominent crest of a black color. Males have eyebrows and a mustache while females have a white frown, as well as greyish cheeks and chest. They have a harmonious and sweet song.
Harpy eagle
They are named after the foul and evil creatures (part woman and part bird) of Greek mythology. They are large and powerful crested eagles from the tropical forests of South America and the South Pacific. They nest in the tops of the tallest trees and hunt macaws, monkeys and sloths. The large harpy eagle that ranges from southern Mexico to Brazil, is about 1 meter long and has a crest of dark feathers on its head.
Its body is black above and white below except for a dark stripe on the chest. It is becoming increasingly rare, particularly in Mexico and Central America. This bird is about 70 cm long. It is ashy brown in color and has a long tail and a short plume. Very similar in appearance and habits to the Philippine Eagle.
Ocellated Turkey
Found only in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, the ocellated turkey certainly bears a resemblance to the American wild turkey. But it is a different species. It is smaller and lacks the typical “beard” of the more familiar wild turkey.
Their mating call is higher pitched than usual. However, the most striking difference is the color. The vibrant, almost unreal color: iridescent feathers, large spots on the tail, a bright red ring around the eye, and a blue head covered in red and yellow nodules (nodules that swell and become brighter in males during breeding season). reproduction).
Most protectors consider it near threatened, as deforestation makes the birds easier to kill by local subsistence hunters, a major factor in the species' decline. Many protection organizations are working in protected areas in the Yucatan Peninsula.
Emerald Hummingbird
This is a small Central American hummingbird that is endemic to Costa Rica and western Panama; where it occurs in the Pacific lowlands and foothills, locally up to an elevation of 1500 m. They live in dense savannahs, clearings, crops and in gardens. These beautiful birds measure 8 cm long (including beak and tail) and weigh about 2,6 grams.
Adult male has metallic greenish upperparts, brighter colored underparts, white extremities, and an intensely divergent tail. The adult female has gray underparts, a pale stripe behind the eye, and dark byxmas on the ears. She has white tips to her tail, which lacks the deep fork of the male.
The regent honeycreeper
This bird gets its name from one of its preferred food sources: the nectar of eucalyptus trees. It is native to southeastern Australia. Unfortunately, it has been in decline since the late XNUMXth century. Habitat loss due to the combined effects of human activity and global warming have contributed to its critically endangered status. These and the many other species of birds are fundamental to the biodiversity of planet Earth.
California condor
This bird became extinct in the wild in the late 26s. During the previous years, the Department of the Interior of the United States undertook an ambitious project to capture all the specimens that remained in the wild. At the time, that number was only XNUMX.
Since then, the total population has grown to more than 400, and the department has reintroduced these birds to national parks such as the Grand Canyon. However, these numbers can be misleading. There are currently only 44 mature individuals in the wild, and even minor habitat loss threatens to further reduce this population.
Causes of extinction and care
- industrial agriculture: Crop pesticides are poison to any number of birds. The problem is that more than a third of the earth's surface is dedicated to agriculture. Farmland is often thought of as an idyllic natural landscape; but the expansion and increase of agriculture impacts a massive 74% of globally threatened birds. Not only does it destroy much-needed habitat, especially in tropical regions, but some pesticides are poisonous to birds.
The solution: Fortunately, it is possible to farm in a way that is sustainable and compatible with nature, while still earning a good living. For example, organizations that help local farmers grow wildlife-friendly organic jasmine rice. In exchange for not using pesticides or herbicides and refraining from hunting or logging, farmers receive a premium price for their products.
- Logging: In this case, the problem is that almost two thirds of the species are found in the forests and logging is a big problem for the birds. Many of these species cannot live outside forests and cannot fly among the remaining fragments. Logging is driven by global demand for wood, paper and land to grow staples and biofuels.
The solution: hard work is being done to reverse this trend. There is an incentive from foundations and individuals to plant, save and restore a billion trees by the middle of the millennium. They also seek to coordinate forest restoration projects.
- Invasive species: In this case, the problem is that many have heard of invasive species, but few people realize how harmful they are to birds. Over the last half century, intruders such as rats and mice have been responsible for more than 70% of endangered birds. Birds on remote islands are especially susceptible to this threat, as they evolved with few natural predators.
The solution: 90 islands around the world have been recognized where diverse groups of highly endangered native birds are endangered by encroaching mammals. If exterminations on these islands are successful, approximately 60 groups of birds at risk globally could be protected.
- Hunting and traps: The main problem is the illegal hunting and capture of birds that can cause a huge drop in the population in a short space of time. One of the most heartbreaking examples is the vigil of helmeted hornbill. In 2015, this spectacular bird went from being listed as Near Threatened to Critically Endangered after hunters began targeting it for its highly sought after, solid "Ivory Red" helmet.
The solution: One of the main ways to curb this danger is to change the law or strengthen existing ones. Currently, 155 species of birds are protected by CITES, the convention for the illicit trade of animal life. Organizations are also working to prevent illegal hunting in their country. In Italy, drones are being used to inspect the prohibited capture of birds. In Brazil, undercover agents infiltrated commercial networks to stop the capture of the macaw.
- Climate change: The biggest problem is that so far almost a quarter of the groups of birds studied globally have been put at categorical risk by climate change. The cycles of reproduction and movement are already changing. A recent study found that the UK's warmer springs are causing caterpillar numbers to rise earlier, meaning that by the time many bird chicks hatch, there aren't enough caterpillars to feed them all.
The solution: The network of important sites for birds and biodiversity of different organizations identifies vital natural soils that not only benefit birds. Many of these spaces serve as carbon sinks, where trees and vegetation absorb excess carbon from the air and help reduce the effects of climate change.