Moerasvogels

One in 10 Hong Kong bird species is at risk of extinction

For many people in Hong Kong, talk of endangered species conjures up images of wildlife whose natural habitats are “out there”, somewhere far away – such as giant pandas in the bamboo forests of Sichuan province, polar bears in the Arctic and miniature monkeys in the Brazilian rainforest. If, like me, you are a birdwatcher, however, the list of threatened species feels far closer to home.

The iconic curlew will be extinct as a breeding species in Ireland within a decade

The haunting cry of the curlew (Numenius arquata) has long been embedded in Irish literary culture as well as in individual memory. Yet, with the breeding population dropping by a staggering 96 per cent since the 1980s, we are left to wonder whether Ireland’s future generations will have any more than these tales to rely on when learning about this iconic bird.

Die Vogelarten der Nadelwälder im Kanton Zug zeigen negative Entwicklungen

Im Kanton Zug haben sich die Brutvögel in den Naturschutzgebieten während der letzten vier Jahrzehnte unterschiedlich entwickelt. Am meisten unter Druck gekommen sind die Vögel der Moore. So ist der Kiebitz vom Aussterben bedroht. Sein Bestand ging von zehn Paaren auf ein einziges zurück. Eine mehrheitlich negative Entwicklung ist auch bei den Vögeln der Nadelwälder zu beobachten, wie die Direktion des Innern am Dienstag mitteilte. Dies zeigen Daten, die zwischen 1979 und 2016 erhoben wurden.

Insect-eating birds decline where bee-killing neonicotinoids are present

In his book, Dutch toxicologist Henk Tennekes (2010) makes the case that the contamination of surface water by neonicotinoids is so widespread in the Netherlands (and possibly elsewhere in Europe), that loss of insect biomass on a continental scale is behind many of the widespread declines that are being seen, be they of marsh birds, heath or meadow birds or even coastal species. This suggests that we should be looking at possible links between neonicotinoid insecticides and birds, not on a farm scale, but in the context of whole watersheds and regions.

Black tern decline in the Klamath Basin

Results from long-term monitoring efforts show that Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) population declines in the Klamath Basin are higher than declines previously documented for continental and regional populations. Results from a 10 year study conducted by Klamath Bird Observatory show a steady, sharp decline in numbers of Black Terns in the wetlands and open waters of Agency Lake and Upper Klamath Lake. According to a Black Tern conservation plan created in 2006, the desired population objective within the Great Basin — which includes the Klamath Basin — is 10,000 individuals.

Hen harrier plunges towards extinction in England

The hen harrier (Circus cyaneus), an iconic bird of prey, is heading towards the brink of extinction in England, new figures suggest. There are just four breeding pairs left in England and numbers are declining elsewhere in the UK. Scotland is the traditional stronghold of these raptors, but numbers have fallen 9% since 2010. Numbers in England fell from twelve pairs in 2010 to just four in 2016.

Murray-Darling Basin's water birds in dramatic decline, study shows

New research has found a dramatic decline in water birds in the Murray-Darling Basin, with numbers down about 70 per cent in the past three decades. A University of New South Wales team found the alarming drop after crunching 32 years of data. The study has been published today in the Global Change Biology journal. Director of the UNSW Centre for Ecosystem Science, Richard Kingsford, who surveys up to 2,000 wetlands around Australia annually, headed up the research.

Ruim een derde van de Belgische vogels zijn bedreigd

Meer dan een derde van alle Belgische broedvogels zijn op Europese schaal bedreigd. Vooral weide- en akkervogels zitten in slechte papieren. Dat blijkt uit een uitgebreid rapport van Birdlife International, waarover Natuurpunt bericht. "Er zijn 184 broedvogelsoorten in België", verduidelijkt Gerald Driessens van Natuurpunt. "62 daarvan zijn 'Species of European Conservation Concern'. Dat betekent dat hun populatiegrootte in heel Europa onrustwekkend klein is. Voor 24 van die soorten wordt de laatste jaren ook nog eens een duidelijke achteruitgang gesignaleerd in ons land."

Veel broedvogels van de toendra gaan achteruit

Van de 263 onderzochte vogelsoorten die Nederland aandoen als doortrekker of wintergast zijn er 39 op de nieuwe ‘Rode Lijst’ van bedreigde vogels terecht gekomen en negen op de oranje lijst. De oranje lijst is een lijst van vogels die de afgelopen tien jaar constant in aantal zijn afgenomen en dus ook in de gevarenzone dreigen te komen. Van de wintergasten en doortrekkers die in ons land achteruit zijn gegaan, broeden er zo’n dertien op de toendra.

The survival of the White-bellied heron greatly depends on the existence of their wetland habitat

The mighty Brahmaputra and its tributaries serve as the winter visiting ground to many migratory birds. From the marshes of Kaziranga to the forests of Eaglenest in western Arunachal and further up to the alpine areas of Arunachal -- one come across more than 750 species of birds that includes most of the winter visitors. Assam, along with the other six northeastern states, shares a common migration route for many of the avifauna that flies over Bhutan, Tibet, China, Myanmar and Bangladesh.