In the 15th goal of the United Nations Program and Development Programme: Life on Land, the 5th and 10th items aim to protect biodiversity
5.Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity and, by 2020, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species
10.Mobilize and significantly increase financial resources from all sources to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity and ecosystems
Why birds are matter
Cagan Sekercioglu, an ornithologist and professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Utah, points out in his new book "Why Birds Are Important" that the diversity of bird diets provides a window into the many ways birds can benefit the ecosystem. Birds that eat fruit or diet animals help disperse seeds away from the mother tree and seed predators. Birds that drink nectar pollinate flowers and help spread the genetic material of flowers. Birds that go up the food chain and eat insects, rodents or fish help control these populations and prevent them from destroying the ecosystem. Scavengers such as Bald V acted as cleaners and consumed the corpses. Bird droppings also help redistribute nutrients throughout the environment.
New study finds US and Canada have lost more than 1 in 4 birds in the past 50 years
Birds are excellent ecological indicators.
According to research by Lipu, at least 30% of the 250 nesting species in Italy are in a poorly protected state. This means that about 80 species are in danger of disappearing from our sky.
A study in the journal Science showed that since 1970, bird populations in the United States and Canada have declined by 29 percent, or almost 3 billion birds, signaling a widespread ecological crisis. The results show tremendous losses across diverse groups of birds and habitats—from iconic songsters such as meadowlarks to long-distance migrants such as swallows and backyard birds including sparrows.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
Nest boxes are an effective way to promote the reproduction of most of birds. A wide range of bird species seek out hollows to build their nests.
Build a Nest Box to Welcome Spring Birds
The nest box should be placed in a safe location. In a 2-year radiotelemetry study of Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) reproductive success and fledgling survival in a 24-ha forested park in a residential area of Lake Oswego, Oregon. In corroboration of previous research on this species, we found fates 36 of 52 fledglings survived the 27-day tracking period. All deaths were from predation, and at least 11 of 16 predation events were attributable to Domestic Cats and Western Screech-Owls.
Humans’ positive behavior towards birds can reduce their fear of humans and make them more adaptable to urban life.
Barbara Clucas, John M. Marzluff found that residents of Berlin encouraged birds more than residents of Seattle did, and that Seattleites discouraged birds more than Berliners.
These differences varied across the urbanization gradient. Likewise, birds (crows and other songbirds) varied their flight initiation distance across the urbanization gradient, with distances increasing from urban to rural sites.
However, in rural sites in Seattle, American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) had exaggerated flight initiation distances compared with those of American Robins (Turdus migratorius) in Seattle and those of Hooded Crows (C. cornix), House Sparrows (Passer domesticus), and European Starlings in rural Berlin.
This exaggerated wariness of humans in crows and starlings is correlated with the relatively high levels of discouraging behavior toward birds by humans in these rural areas in Seattle. Therefore, it is an economical and effective solution that citizens to spontaneously produce and operate nest boxes.