Re:Bird populations declining fast across North America
by horsawlarway on Monday December 13, 2021 @08:26PM
(#29547032)
I think the honest answer is that we just don't have nearly as much surety around these numbers as you might expect.
I went looking for data on actual bird populations, and I get wildly different estimates.
The 3 billion number comes from the following source (as far as I can tell):
"
Critical data were contributed by citizen-science participants in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count, North American Breeding Bird Survey, and other bird-monitoring initiatives. The Partners in Flight Avian Conservation Assessment Database was a critical source for the data.
" - https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/bring-birds-back/
I went looking for data on actual bird populations, and I get wildly different estimates.
The 3 billion number comes from the following source (as far as I can tell):
" Critical data were contributed by citizen-science participants in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count, North American Breeding Bird Survey, and other bird-monitoring initiatives. The Partners in Flight Avian Conservation Assessment Database was a critical source for the data. " - https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/bring-birds-back/
Nat Geo quotes
" New research estimates there are between 50 billion and 430 billion birds on Earth. " - https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/how-many-...
A lot of articles seem to quote the "at least 50 billion" line, probably based on the above numbers.
Basically - I'd say we have no idea how many birds there really are. Take ALL numbers involved as wild guesses.