U.S. State of the Birds report released

[Laura Bies]

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The 2022 U.S. State of the Birds report was released last week, finding increases in waterfowl populations thanks to investments in wetland conservation. Unfortunately, the data also show birds in the United States are declining overall in every other habitat.

The report, published by 33 science and conservation organizations and agencies, presents data on changes in bird populations across habitats of the United States in the past five decades. Key findings include:

● More than half of U.S. bird species are declining.

● U.S. grassland birds are among the fastest declining with a 34% loss since 1970.

● Waterbirds and ducks in the U.S. have increased by 18% and 34% respectively during the same period.

● 70 newly identified Tipping Point species have each lost 50% or more of their populations in the past 50 years, and are on a track to lose another half in the next 50 years if nothing changes

In addition to summaries of trends, the report also highlights conservation opportunities and successes in each biome, as examples of how actions that benefit birds create healthier environments for people and all life that depends on these shared habitats.

The report is available at stateofthebirds.org. Also available for download is supplemental material consisting of population trend analyses for 266 species used in the trends summaries for status of birds by habitat.

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