According to research published by ABC and other partners in 2019, grassland bird populations declined by 53 percent (more than 720 million birds) in the U.S. and Canada since 1970. These declines were steeper than those of boreal forest birds, eastern forest birds, coastal shorebirds, and aerial insectivores. The following… Read more >>

Virginia is a great place to watch birds. The state supports a variety of forest types, including bottomland hardwoods in wet areas and along riparian corridors; pine forests and oak-hickory woodlands in uplands; and conifer forests and mixed broadleaf/coniferous forests on top of mountains. These forests and their various successional… Read more >>

Waterbirds are among Virginia’s superlative birds, including some of the largest (pelicans and swans), most colorful (ducks), most ornamentally plumed (egrets and herons), and most exciting to watch (skimmers skimming, terns diving, ibises flapping over marshes at sunrise or sunset). Most are great flyers and many are migratory. Given these… Read more >>

Most birders in Virginia start watching birds around their homes. The following species can be seen almost anywhere in the state, often in cities and towns. While some of the bird species included here are among the most common birds of Virginia, others are harder to find, but worth the… Read more >>

Bird populations are declining around the world. And while many factors contribute — from habitat loss to pesticides, outdoor cats, and window collisions — it is increasingly clear that climate change is an important driver behind this worrying trend. Climate patterns have shifted throughout Earth’s long history, but the speed… Read more >>

Latin America and the Caribbean contain about half of the world’s biodiversity, including over 4,000 bird species. Unfortunately, the rich flora and fauna of the region is at risk from threats such as habitat loss and climate change, which are fueling population declines in a significant number of bird species.… Read more >>

U.S. grasslands that once resounded with the boisterous song of the Western Meadowlark are growing silent as numbers of the famed singer decline. This situation, distressing as it is, isn’t unique: A number of state birds have experienced major population losses over the last 50 years, challenging assumptions that these… Read more >>

Climate change is bad news for birds. Impacts like higher temperatures, rising sea levels, extreme weather, habitat loss, and disease spread are already having an effect on hundreds of avian species. Because the challenge can seem daunting, we at American Bird Conservancy (ABC) propose that one of the best things… Read more >>

Lay of the Land: The B.J. Bishop Wetlands are a surprise to find in the arid landscape of Texas’s Big Bend. This desert oasis adjacent to the Rio Grande includes 11 acres of wetland fed with treated wastewater from nearby Presidio, Texas, and 3 acres for a riparian tree nursery.… Read more >>

Many birds nest only in this treeless biome. As the planet warms, what is at stake and how might they fare? Beyond where stunted conifers surrender to bitter winds and frozen soil lies a region of extremes. There, tiny, hardy plants blanket the terrain for thousands of miles, and a… Read more >>