Will Most Birds Go Extinct?

On By Mike and Christy

Earlier this fall it was reported that over 3 billion birds or almost 1/3 the bird population has been lost in North America due to human enterprises. A new report from the Audubon Society demonstrates that about 66% of bird species in North America may be threatened with extinction resulting from anthropogenic climate change. The full report can be found here. The findings of this study are bleak to say the least. When you consider the fact that this report only focuses on climate change and does not consider other anthropogenic factors such as habitat destruction, pollution etc. a dark picture of a world with no birds could certainly be painted. Mass extinction events like the one we are in typically don’t end well for most species humans included. The report indicates that if we take action ASAP to reduce the rate and extent of warming there may be a ray of hope. How do you feel about living in a world without birds?

Click photo for slide show.

41 thoughts on “Will Most Birds Go Extinct?”

    1. Hi Keri, we totally agree with your thoughts. I am sure similar reports or studies performed across most animal kingdoms would shoe similar results to this study. We can not even begin to know the effects of such dramatic species loss on the future of life on earth.

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  3. With each new climate report, I find it so hard to be optimistic about humans doing enough collectively to stem the tide. A case of too little, too late, I fear. It breaks my heart on a daily basis that we fiddle while Rome burns. 😦 I wish I had a magic wand, for we really need a miracle right now.

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    1. HI Eliza, we also find it hard to be optimistic about the future of the planet and the myriad of species we will eliminate . Yes we fiddle in the name of corporate profit and in tis case Rome is the planet we live on. Hard to figure isn’t it.

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  4. I love birds and like watching them, but we need to worry about more than just birds. How many species have we already lost. I dont understand how people can say climate change is not real or not an issue. People need to wake up.. Everything is connected and there will be a snowball affect that we wont be able to stop if we dont start doing something now.

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    1. HI and I totally agree, I reported on birds given this recent study and the data it provides. I would like to see data on plants, mammals and all other species presented as well. The effect of species loss both in plant and animal kingdoms will indeed snowball as more and more species are lost until something catastrophic and irrevesable happens. It will take a collective effort and I sure hope that happens as extinction of our own species is also at stake. We think we know what will happen as the climate changes but these are only educated guesses and it is always the unknown that has the greatest impact. Thanks for reading the post and wishing you a fine week.

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  6. We are approaching a point of no return…at least no return to what has been considered normal for a very long time. We need a change in the decision makers and if that doesn’t happen very little positive movement will be seen. I say decision makers because they are our representatives…we are the leaders and it is up to us to put folks in a position to move us in a positive direction. As divided as we are, and the same is true in most other industrialized nations with government established for profit making, things are not looking favorable. In the past we could have said goodbye to the human race and the earth would heal itself and all other life will go on. We are now in a place where we could actually take the planet with us.

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    1. Hi Steve, I fully agree it is time that we the people elect individuals who represent us as the majority of the electorate do believe climate change is something we need to address both locally, at our state and national level. There is work that needs to be done. You do hit the nail on the head that we are currently in a period in which those we choose to represent us represent industries that could give a rats behind about the earths future as long as the profits keep coming in. Perhaps there are those who feel they can by their personal safety with billion dollar salaries. I am not sure that will be the case as what will really happen when we hit the steep part of the exponential curve in species lose begins. Yes, we could take the whole ball of wax down and I am not sure god will look favorably on the human species.

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    1. Hi Tanja, we are indeed embarking into a new reality where other life will be greatly diminished, and most likely human life as well, if we just sit and watch. We are grateful to have a handful of birds left on the planet and the goes for other life as well. The diversity of life is amazing yet shrinking every day.

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    1. HI and yes it is a very disheartening report. We need to act quickly for all those that will inhabit the planet in the future. It is always fun to see species from other continents and how they see exotic when they are no so common to us. We feel the same way when seeing birds from other places.

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  10. To ignore that we are part of nature would be to our peril. Earth is an insect’s planet; without birds, insects will thrive unchecked. We will no doubt resort to even ‘better’ pesticides, because someone is always ready to profit on ignorance.

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  13. Hats off for raising awareness, Mike. Sadly, and as others on here have echoed, I believe many so-called deniers of a very real climate crisis are perfectly aware of the consequences of their own greed and of corporate resource extraction but are quite happy to reap their own short term profits at the expense of life as it should be on earth. We’re past the tipping point, and the fight now is to reduce the tremendous harm to come for future generations – not just future humans, but all life.

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    1. Hi Adam, I agee fully with your thoughts here that may of those labeled a climate change deniers or in fact liars protecting their personal or even worse their corporations greed. Others probably know climate change is real as well but due to some misguided tribalism to belong to a specific political or social group deny as well. The facts are real and there are very few individual without the intellectual capacity to study the facts in this case. Also we are indeed well beyond a tipping point for prevention of untoward damage to the planets as it is and gong forward it will all be damage control based upon human action either taken or not taken. It is probably true that life will carry on as the processes of nature continue either with or without homo sapiens but to go down in the history books of the future as the species that knowingly caused a massive extinction of life on earth? You know.

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  15. We travel around Australia quite a bit. Each year it is hotter and drier and we see more signs of the effects of global warming. It’s heartbreaking to see farms reduced to dust, wild animals killed by trucks because the only grass is on the roadsides nurtured by the overnight dew on the tar. And each year too the bushfire season seems to start earlier devouring anything that is left.

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