Meadow birds

North America has more than a billion fewer birds than it did 40 years ago, with the snowy owl (Bubo scandiacus) and the chimney swift (Chaetura pelagica) just two of the better-known species in dramatic decline across the continent, a recent survey has found. The total number of continental landbirds stands at about 10 billion, down from about 11.5 billion in 1970.

The number of birds in Germany and Europe has dropped significantly over the past 30 years, according to the German government. In Germany, one-third of all bird species have seen "significant population declines" since the end of the 1990s, said the government in response to a question about the plight of birds across Europe put forward by the Greens. "The situation of birds is dramatic," said Steffi Lemke, a German Green Party lawmaker.

Die Zahl der Vögel in ganz Deutschland und Europa geht dramatisch zurück. Vor allem Vögel, die in Agrarlandschaften leben, sind bedroht. In einer Antwort auf eine Kleine Anfrage der Grünen, die der Deutschen Presse-Agentur am Donnerstag vorlag, hat die Bundesregierung die Zahlen zusammengetragen: Insgesamt ist demnach in der EU die Zahl der Brutpaare in den landwirtschaftlichen Gebieten zwischen 1980 und 2010 um 300 Millionen zurückgegangen, ein Minus von 57 Prozent.

For generations of Missouri farmers, an enjoyable sign that spring was transitioning into summer was the crisp, clear call of a meadowlark perched on a nearby fencepost. However, that call is becoming alarmingly less common throughout the region. Many people are familiar with the decrease of the greater prairie-chicken throughout much of the central U.S. and most have also heard about the steadily worsening quail situation for the same area. However, unless you’re a birding enthusiast, you’re likely unaware of the downward spiral of eastern meadowlark numbers.

The loggerhead shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) is one of a disappearing breed in Ontario; there is a small number in a little protected pocket near Napanee, and otherwise there only appears to be one shrike in Eastern Ontario. It eats mostly insects at this time of year, but also small birds and mice, and often impales prey on a hawthorn tree’s thorn or barbed wire to hold it steady. It is nicknamed the butcherbird after its carnivorous tendencies.

Nach Angaben des Umweltamtes des Landkreises Göttingen sind in den vergangenen 30 Jahren folgende Arten ausgestorben: Steinkauz (Athene noctua), Grauammer (Emberiza calandra, Syn.: Miliaria calandra), Uferschwalbe (Riparia riparia), Kreuzotter (Vipera berus), Europäischer Flusskrebs (Astacus astacus), Goldener Scheckenfalter (Euphydryas aurinia, Syn.: Eurodryas aurinia), Schwarzfleckiger Ameisenbläuling (Phengaris arion).

Der Schutz der Tiere, Pflanzen und ihrer Lebensräume im Kanton Zürich reicht trotz einigen Erfolgen nicht aus. Die Fachstelle Naturschutz kann zwar laufende Massnahmen weiterführen. Für mehr fehlen ihr jedoch meist die Mittel. Der durchaus naturverbundene Baudirektor Markus Kägi hob an der Präsentation hervor, der Mensch sei nicht nur Geniesser und Nutzer, sondern habe eine Verpflichtung gegenüber der Natur.