The 10 Largest Endangered Birds
Birds are beautiful and fascinating creatures that we share this earth with. But, sadly, many species are falling victim to climate change and habitat destruction.
It is hard to believe that birds you see every day and admire so much are plummeting towards extinction. These are the most stunning examples of this phenomenon.
1. Philippine Eagle
Once the longest extant eagle in the world, the Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) is now critically endangered. Its most serious threats include habitat loss, particularly from agricultural conversion and forest fragmentation.
As a true forest raptor, it requires pristine secondary and primary forests in which to hunt, breed and raise its young. Its short but significantly broad wing span helps it maneuver through dense foliage and environmental obstacles that would deter other large avian predators.
It is a diurnal species, meaning it hunts, roosts and builds nests during the day. Its distinctive call is a descending whistled “weeuuu.” It is a carnivorous raptor that feeds on monkeys, bats, Asian palm civets, giant cloud-rats, flying squirrels and fruit bats. Conservation efforts have included passing legislation prohibiting persecution, establishing community-based forest management, survey work and captive breeding programs.
2. Guadalupe Storm-petrel
CRITICALLY ENDANGERED (POSSIBLE EXTINCT)
Probably only 50 individuals or fewer breed on Guadalupe Island, 280 km west of Baja California. It was once abundant in 1906, but the last record of a breeding bird was in 1912. It is virtually indistinguishable from sympatric Leach’s storm petrel and has been overlooked because surveys on Guadalupe were often conducted outside its breeding season.
Its rounded wings with a rounded tip, long legs and fused tubular nostrils give it an almost prehistoric appearance, harking back to the dinosaur ancestors of seabirds. Its cosmopolitan distribution includes breeding on islands around the world and at sea, where it is strictly pelagic. It has a strong philopatry (the tendency of birds to return year after year to their nest sites). It is most numerous in the Southern Ocean around Australasia and breeds off Mexico and California.
3. Southern Red-breasted Plover
A tiny shorebird that breeds in North America, the piping plover was once hunted to near extinction for its feathers (used to make women’s hats). Thanks to massive conservation efforts, the bird’s population is now at about 8,000. However, it still faces the dangers of habitat loss and human disturbance on beaches where the birds nest.
Piping plover pairs have long-term pair-bonds and strongly defended territories, with males calling a rolling “trrrt” while chasing intruders away from their nest sites. Intruders may also be pecked or bitten. It breeds on sandy or shell beaches and in marine harbours, with the northern race aquilonius breeding at large estuaries and inland on grassy areas. The southern race obscurus breeds on high, gravel beach ridges and in rocky areas above the tree-line. Maori names for the species include tuturiwhatu, pukunui and kukuruatu.
4. New Caledonian Rail
The New Caledonian Rail (Gallirallus kukwiedei) is a largely flightless bird that probably evolved from a similar species, the common swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio. It has reduced wings and other flight adaptations, making it seem likely that the bird was flightless at some time in its history.
Its habitat, wetlands and forests in New Caledonia, is also home to the charismatic Kagu (Gallinago galeata) and other birds including Cloven-feathered Dove, Brown Goshawk and Grey Teal.
Like other birds, rails are prone to becoming endangered for a number of reasons. They are often found in marshes and areas close to water and therefore lose ground when they are encroached upon by human development. They are also vulnerable to hunting and pesticide poisoning. However, many organisations are putting in efforts to ensure these birds remain as they should.
5. Jerdon’s Courser
Despite being widely considered extinct until it was rediscovered in 1986 Jerdon’s Courser is one of the rarest birds in the world. With a spatula-like bill this cryptic bird occupies a narrow patch of habitat in the rocky scrub jungle of Andhra Pradesh.
The bird’s habitat is under threat from grazing by livestock, woodcutting and clearing of land for agriculture. The enigmatic species requires a dense bush cover to hide from predators and to forage for food.
Jeganathan and his colleagues developed a new tracking method for this bird that is now used worldwide to detect rare species. This new technique uses the bird’s call to identify it in dense vegetation. They found that the bird’s occurrence is strongly correlated with the density of bushes and has been reduced by human exploitation of this habitat. The emergence of the bird in new blocks within the Sri Lankamalleswara Sanctuary is encouraging but more work is required to determine whether it occurs outside this area.
6. Sulu Hornbill
The Sulu Hornbill (Anthracoceros montani) is one of the most critically endangered bird species in the world. This large non-migratory forest bird was once common to abundant throughout its range but now persists only on three islands in the Sulu archipelago (Jolo, Sanga-Sanga and Tawi-Tawi). The Sulu Hornbill lives in lowland and mountain forests and feeds on fruits and insects. It nests in tree hollows and has two eggs that hatch from May-June.
Its habitat is not protected and it is threatened by logging, hunting, and encroachment from settlers. A team led by conservation biologist Nikki Realubit from Adamson University is visiting Tawi-Tawi this year to survey the remaining quality forest patches and develop a new Conservation Action Plan. This work will include community-based monitoring programs, education and advocacy. Check back for more updates on this exciting project.
7. Masked Finfoot
A secretive waterbird that spends most of its life on the water, the Masked Finfoot (Heliopais personatus) is among Asia’s most endangered birds. According to a paper published this month in the UK-based ornithological journal Forktail, its global population is very small and declining rapidly.
The species depends on low-lying, undisturbed areas of forested wetlands in river channels that have formerly seen little human activity. But these wetlands are being cleared, and hunting and egg collection are major threats.
The lead author of the paper, Sayam U Chowdhury, estimates that the Masked Finfoot’s population is around 108-304 mature individuals spread across a handful of small subpopulations. The bird’s curved neck is a pale grey color and its back, tail and wings are a rich brown. Males have a black mask and eyebrow that contrast with a white eyering and neck marking.
8. Chapin’s Crombec
Previously found in old-growth pine forests throughout the Southeast, clearing and suppression of natural burning reduced the population to the point of extinction. Through a combination of habitat protection, captive breeding, and bird sanctuaries, this majestic species is making a comeback.
A bulky African warbler, this species was recently moved to the new family Macrosphenidae from the Old World warblers (Sylviidae) following molecular studies. It is sedentary, uncommon in the northern part of its range and common in South Africa, frequenting arid savanna and woodland with thick undergrowth, gardens, Acacia thickets and scrub, and open mopane woodland (Colophospermum mopane).
This species is endangered due to habitat loss, hunting, and pesticide poisoning. ABC supports conservation efforts such as building bird sanctuaries and conducting captive breeding to help them recover.
9. Cebu Brown-dove
The Cebu Brown-dove (Ptilinopus frontalis) is endemic to the Philippines and found only in lowland forests, where it is often seen foraging with its congeners. The species is considered Endangered by the IUCN and its population is small and declining. It is threatened by habitat loss due to agricultural expansion and clearing for cattle grazing.
A number of unconfirmed sightings in recent years indicate that the species may persist, but it is likely to be declining as its habitat disappears. It has not been recorded since 1892 and Cebu retains only 0.03% of its original forest cover, so its remaining population must be very small. BioCamp participants were delighted when this bird suddenly appeared in a forest roadside canopy after an electronic bird call during a bio-monitoring activity. It is one of the few birds that have responded to a playback of its unique calls.
10. Eskimo Curlew
The Eskimo Curlew is a mottled brownish shorebird that has long legs and a thin, slightly down-curved bill. It shows cinnamon wing linings in flight and is similar to the American subspecies, the Hudsonian curlew (Ectopistes migratorius).
The species was once one of the most widespread and abundant shorebirds in North America. But during the nineteenth century, Eskimo curlews declined dramatically. This was partly due to uncontrolled market hunting. The birds were easy targets, gathering in large flocks to fatten up on berries and insects during spring migration and easily circling back within gun range.
The birds wintered in the pampas of Argentina and spent the breeding season on tundra wetlands in western Canada and Alaska. They were once a common sight in the central United States as they passed through the Great Plains on their way to Canada and South America.
