1. Conservation is not only about saving threatened species; it is also about keeping common birds common! But how do we do this without knowing how common species are faring?
Two years ago on this day (17 Feb), the State of India's Birds (SoIB) reported on precisely this.
2. Using millions of reports contributed by Indian birdwatchers to the eBird platform, SoIB 2020 examined trends in reporting rates (an index of abundance) over 25+ years. This is the only assessment of the majority (867 species) of India's birds. The results were eye-opening!
3. Some species are doing well. For example, our National Bird, the Indian Peafowl, is clearly increasing in abundance and spreading into new places.
4. Also, the House Sparrow, which many believe is close to extinction is, in fact, stable and doing just fine.
5. Other species are not as lucky. For example, Cotton Teal, Crested Treeswift, Short-toed Eagle, Common Woodshrike, Small Minivet, and a number of other species showed evidence of severe decline. These are species not usually on the conservation radar, but clearly need to be!
6. A number of species groups are in particular trouble, including raptors, migrants in general, specialists of grasslands and forests, and Western Ghats endemics.
7. Overall, the report identifies 101 species of highest conservation concern, many of which are not listed as threatened in the @IUCN global red list (@IUCNRedList).
8. The report contains a number of recommendations, divided into 3 categories: Policy & Management; Research; and Public Involvement & Action. See link to full report below.
9. The State of India's Birds report was a collaborative effort between 10 institutions: @atree_org, @BNHSIndia, @FES_India, @ncfindia, National Biodiversity Authority, @NCBS_Bangalore, @SACONCoimbatore, @WetlandsInt_SA, @wiiofficial1 and @WWFINDIA
10. All information about SoIB 2020 is available at the report website (stateofindiasbirds.in), including links to the report, a species-wise table of results, species-wise maps and trend graphs, and detailed methodology.
11. The SoIB is envisaged as a regular, updated, report. The next report is delayed because of the pandemic. But with more historical as well as current observations coming in, the second report will surely provide further insight useful for conservation policy and action.
12. This was a thread on the second anniversary of the State of India's Birds 2020 report.
@nehaa_sinha @mdmadhusudan @mizoraman @vivek4wild @BirdLife_News @Team_eBird @moefcc @IndiAves @RichDGregory3 @stubutchart @AparajitaDatta4
stateofindiasbirds.in
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