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The Environmental Leadership Dinner

Audubon Achievements: Why Birds

Birds are a priceless part of America’s heritage. They are beautiful, they are economically important—and they reflect the health of our environment. The State of the Birds report reveals troubling declines of bird populations during the past 40 years—a warning signal of the failing health of our ecosystems. At the same time, we see heartening evidence that strategic land management and conservation action can reverse declines of birds. This report calls attention to the collective efforts needed to protect nature’s resources for the benefit of people and wildlife.

Although some coastal birds are increasing, shorebirds that rely on coastal habitats for breeding and refueling on migration are besieged by human disturbance and dwindling food supplies. Sea level rise caused by accelerating climate change will inundate shoreline habitats. Half of all coastally migrating shorebirds have declined; for example, Red Knots have declined by an alarming 82%. Because of their relatively small and highly threatened global populations, shorebirds are of high conservation concern.