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Posted at 1:26 PM, Sep 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-09-19 15:41:33-04


The scientists involved in the study warn that like a canary in a coalmine, birds reveal environmental health. This steep loss of bird populations, including some of the most common birds like sparrows and finches, shows that human impacts on the continent's environment mean it can no longer support the wildlife systems it once did.


"Citizen-science participants contributed critical scientific data to show the international scale of losses of birds," said John Sauer, study co-author at the US Geological Survey. "Our results also provide insights into actions we can take to reverse the declines."

The study was published Thursday in the journal Science .





"These data are consistent with what we're seeing elsewhere ... showing massive declines, including insects and amphibians," said Peter Marra, study co-author and director of the Georgetown Environment Initiative at Georgetown University. "It's imperative to address immediate and ongoing threats, both because the domino effects can lead to the decay of ecosystems that humans depend on for our own health and livelihoods -- and because people all over the world cherish birds in their own right. Can you imagine a world without birdsong?"


But these gains don't make up for the current losses because the numbers can't be offset.

Species that had been introduced in certain areas didn't fare well, either. When native and introduced birds are dying out, nothing is replacing them because the birds just aren't thriving in environments so altered by humans, the researchers said.

"It's a wake-up call that we've lost more than a quarter of our birds in the US and Canada," said Adam Smith, study co-author at Environment and Climate Change Canada. "But the crisis reaches far beyond our individual borders. Many of the birds that breed in Canadian backyards migrate through or spend the winter in the US and places farther south -- from Mexico and the Caribbean to Central and South America. What our birds need now is an historic, hemispheric effort that unites people and organizations with one common goal: bringing our birds back."


The loss of common birds has happened before, like the extinction of the passenger pigeon, according to the study. Once the most common bird on Earth, it rapidly went extinct in 1914 due to loss of habitat and excessive hunting -- and because no one was monitoring the population.

Birds are part of a well-functioning ecosystem. They're part of the food chain, they eat insects that are considered pests to humans, and they help with dispersing seed and pollination, the researchers said.

And because birds are monitored so well, the researchers fear that this may "represent the tip of the iceberg, indicating similar or greater losses" in other animal groups, according to the study.



"The story is not over," said Michael Parr, study co-author and president of the American Bird Conservancy. "There are so many ways to help save birds. Some require policy decisions such as strengthening the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. We can also work to ban harmful pesticides and properly fund effective bird conservation programs. Each of us can make a difference with everyday actions that together can save the lives of millions of birds."