As humans move more deeply into the natural habitat of the birds, we can increase our care for the natural world by an investment in bird feeding and enhancement of our suburban yards for them to visit and live, and while not helping directly with the larger birds it certainly helps with the jays, crows, quail, and smaller species.
If our modest yard is any example of how many can be around with just a few hanging and ground feeders, an effort by many suburbanites would reap wonders, and the rewards for us are priceless.
Some common birds get a lot less common
Annual count shows steady declines for a variety of species.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, June 15, 2007
Public alarm over dwindling U.S. bird populations has mostly focused on the ups and downs of a few relatively rare, hard-hit species -- the charismatic bald eagles, peregrine falcons and California condors.
Researchers for the National Audubon Society released figures Thursday that they say illustrate a broader, less noticed problem: the steady decline of a variety of more common birds.
Think house finches, northern pintail ducks and western meadowlarks.
Audubon Society volunteers have been counting birds every Christmas for more than a century. The national organization has compiled 40 years of this data and combined it with annual breeding season counts from the U.S. Geological Survey.
Audubon's conclusion: Some birds have experienced drastic declines that have gone largely unnoticed because their numbers are still large.
