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State of the World's Birds report released
Date: Tuesday 23 September, 2008
Common birds are in decline across the world, providing evidence of a rapid deterioration in the global environment that is affecting all life on earth - including human life. All the world's governments have committed themselves to slowing or halting the loss of biodiversity by 2010. But reluctance to commit what are often trivial sums in terms of national budgets means that this target is almost certain to be missed.
These are some of the stark messages from State of the Worlds Birds, a new publication and website (birdlife.org/sowb) launched today at BirdLife International's World Conference in Buenos Aires.
"Birds provide an accurate and easy to read environmental barometer, allowing us to see clearly the pressures our current way of life are putting on the world's biodiversity", said Dr Mike Rands - BirdLife's CEO.
The report highlights the decline of common birds in the Pacific region. "Studies of resident Australian waders reveal that 81% of their populations disappeared in just quarter of a century", noted Dr Rands. TBN Coordinator, Dean Ingwersen, states that "Species such as Black-winged Stilt and Red-necked Avocet have seen marked declines, and without improved management of critical wetlands and environmental water allocations, these declines will continue."
The story is the same for birds migrating between Australian and Asian regions. "Among the biggest losers so far are Curlew Sandpiper and Eastern Curlew, both of which have suffered due to major habitat loss or alteration along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway", said Mr. Ingwersen. The populations of migrant shorebirds wintering in south-eastern Australia have plummeted by 79% over a 24 year period.
"There are also a number of studies being produced which show serious declines of our once common woodland bird species" reports Mr Ingwersen. "Charismatic birds such as the Hooded Robin, Jacky Winter and Regent Honeyeater are suffering from previous land clearing and inappropriate land management. This is further compounded as the impacts of climate change are felt and isolated remnants of vegetation become unsuitable. Linking landscapes back together will be crucial for the future of these species".
"Many of these birds have been a familiar part of our everyday lives, and people who would not necessarily have noticed other environmental indicators have seen their numbers slipping away, and are wondering why" said Dr Rands. "Because birds are found almost everywhere on earth, they can act as our eyes and ears, and what they are telling us is that the deterioration in biodiversity and the environment is accelerating, not slowing."
State of the Worlds Birds identifies many key global threats, including the intensification of industrial-scale agriculture and fishing, the spread of invasive species, logging and the replacement of natural forest with monocultural plantations. However, Dr Rands warns: "In the long term, human-induced climate change may be the most serious stress of all".
The encouraging news is that conservation works and is relatively cheap. Direct action saved 16 bird species from extinction between 1994 and 2004. But conserving biodiversity now urgently needs more financial support.
"Effective biodiversity conservation is easily affordable, requiring relatively trivial sums at the scale of the global economy", said Dr Rands. "The world is failing in its 2010 pledge to achieve a significant reduction in the current rate of loss of biodiversity", said Dr Rands. "The challenge is to harness international biodiversity commitments and ensure that concrete actions are taken - now!"
Stay tuned for the late November release of the 2008 State of Australia's Birds Report which is a five-year compilation of previous reports -- the first in the series to stocktake the current status of Australia's bird populations, as well as a report on what has changed in the past five years.