Globally, the biggest threats to these birds are habitat loss, climate change and toxic substances, said Evan Buechley, a research associate at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and a scientist at nonprofit HawkWatch International who was not involved in the study. That means "the factors causing the decline have not been remedied" and those species need immediate attention, said Jeff Johnson, a biologist at the University of North Texas, who was not involved in the study. The same was true for 47% of threatened nocturnal raptors, such as owls. Of threatened birds of prey that are active mostly during the day – including most hawks, eagles and vultures – 54% were falling in population, the study found. Harpy eagles were once widespread throughout southern Mexico and Central and South America, but deforestation has dramatically shrunk their range. Harpy eagles were once widespread throughout southern Mexico and Central and South America, but tree cutting and burning has dramatically shrunk their range.Ī 2013 photo of a female harpy eagle and its young in a nest in Darién Province, Panama. A 2016 census estimated only about 100 breeding pairs remain in the country. "The golden eagle is the national bird of Mexico, but we have very few golden eagles left in Mexico,” he said. Other species are in danger of becoming locally extinct in specific regions, meaning they may no longer play critical roles as top predators in those ecosystems, said Gerardo Ceballos, a bird scientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and co-author of the study published recently in the journal Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences. Eighteen species are critically endangered, including the Philippine eagle, the hooded vulture and the Annobon scops owl, the researchers found. Despite a few high-profile conservation success stories – like the dramatic comeback of bald eagle populations in North America – birds of prey are in decline worldwide.Ī new analysis of data from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and BirdLife International found that 30% of 557 raptor species worldwide are considered near threatened, vulnerable or endangered or critically endangered.
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