Agriculture threatens Birds
“The State of the World’s Birds”, a five-year compendium of population data from the best-studied group of animals on the planet, reveals a biodiversity crisis driven by the expansion and intensification of agriculture.
In all, 74% of 1,469 globally threatened birds are affected primarily by farming. Logging, invasive species and hunting are the other main threats.
40% of bird species worldwide are in decline. Overfishing and climate change is affecting seabird species.
Neonicotinoids – widely implicated in flying insect declines (a key bird food source) – have been found to be directly detrimental to some bird species. The neurotoxin also impaired the birds’ migratory orientation.