The number of sparrows in China has decreased by 247 million Europe A new study shows that compared to 1980, the number of other once-ubiquitous birds has dropped significantly.
In less than four years, one out of every six birds—a total of 600 million breeding birds was lost—has disappeared. Common species that have disappeared from the sky include yellow wagtail (97m less), starling (75m less) and skylark (68m less).
Research From RSPB, BirdLife International and Czech Ornithological Society Analyzing the data of 378 of the 445 species of birds from the European Union and the United Kingdom, it was found that between 1980 and 2017, the overall abundance of breeding birds decreased by 17% to 19%.
Among the species related to farmland, the overall and proportional decline in the number of birds is particularly high.
The house sparrow was the worst hit, losing half of its population, while its close relative, the tree sparrow, lost 30 million birds.Due to changes in farming practices, both species are declining, but house sparrows have also disappeared from many cities for reasons that have not yet been determined, but this may include food shortages, diseases such as poultry malaria, and Air pollution.
Although agricultural intensification has led to habitat loss and chemical agriculture The number of insects has dropped drastically Feeding many birds is the cause of many population declines and long-distance migrations, such as Willow Warbler And yellow wagtail, the decline is greater than other groups. Waterbirds, such as frogs and Dortrell, have also declined.
“Our research is a wake-up call for the real threat of extinction and silent spring,” said Fiona Burns, the study’s lead author and senior conservation scientist for the study. Royal Post Office.
Burns says Next year’s meeting Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity is essential to create a strong framework to prevent extinction and restore the richness that many species have lost.
She added: “We need the whole society to take transformative actions to jointly respond to natural and climate crises. This means expanding the scale and ambitions of nature-friendly agriculture, species protection, sustainable forestry and fisheries, and rapidly expanding the network of protected areas.”
Although a total of 900 million birds have disappeared, of the 378 bird species studied, the number of 203 species has increased. Of the 340 million newly added birds, 66% came from only 8 thriving species: black-capped ducks, snow chickens, blackbirds, wrens, goldfinches, robins, turtledoves and blue tits.
Since 1980, the population of 11 raptors has more than doubled, including peregrine falcons, marsh harriers, bald eagles, white-tailed eagles, and golden eagles. Although these species are relatively rare, their populations are still small.
Scientists say these birds of prey benefit from enhanced protection and reduction of harmful pesticides and persecution, and Species restoration projectThe European Union’s Bird Directive and Habitat Directive also provide legal protection for priority species and habitats that have been found to be beneficial to bird species.
Although the rate of decline of many species has slowed over the past decade, the decline is not just a sequelae of the destructive practices of the previous decades, but the study supports previous research that revealed a significant loss of biodiversity in the near future.
The scale and type of loss of bird disappearance are comparable to the decline in North America. Found 3 billion birds disappeared Since 1970.
Anna Staneva, Head of Interim Conservation at BirdLife Europe, said: “This report resounds and clearly shows that nature is ringing the alarm. Although the conservation of rare or endangered birds has achieved some successful recovery, it does not seem to be sufficient to sustain it. The population size of the rich species.
“Ordinary birds are becoming less and less common, mainly because the space they depend on is being wiped out by humans. Nature has disappeared from our farmlands, oceans and cities. Governments across Europe must make legally binding laws. The goal of natural restoration. Otherwise, the consequences will be serious, including for our own species.”
