by Dessi Sieburth

At the northern edge of the Yucatan Peninsula in the southeast of Mexico, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird alights on a small branch. Weighing just three grams, this bird is preparing to begin its first spring migration. As dusk settles over the Yucatan shoreline, the hummingbird takes flight and heads out over the Gulf of Mexico. After flying 900 miles during the entire night without food, water, or rest, the hummingbird is exhausted, having lost almost half its body weight. Then, it sees the color that will save its life—the green trees of the east Texas shoreline. With the goal in sight, the hummingbird summons all its remaining energy to reach the shoreline, descends into a patch of flowers, and soon regains the lost energy and body weight by eating small insects and flower nectar. This incredible journey between Mexico and United States, however, is short compared to the migration of other bird species. The Pectoral Sandpiper migrates more than 8,000 miles between the Alaskan tundra and Argentina—passing through nearly a dozen countries along the way. Since many migratory birds stop in several different countries to refuel and rest, international cooperation to protect the habitat of these migratory species is necessary for the continued survival of these birds. Various instances of international cooperation have occurred; however, much work remains to be done to break the barriers between countries when dealing with environmental protection.

Conservation of migratory species is especially critical in Central and South American countries. Brazil has the highest deforestation rate among all countries, and Venezuela, Bolivia, and Mexico are not far behind (Butler 2020). In these countries, rainforests and cloud forests are being cut down or burned for agriculture, cattle grazing, settlement, and timber. In Brazil, specifically, the Amazon rainforest has been destroyed largely to meet a growing demand for beef, soy, and land. The United States, on the other hand, has actually increased the amount of forest within its borders, most likely due to widespread conservation efforts (Butler 2020). By some estimates, the United States is considered to be the tenth most biodiverse country in the world, while Brazil is the most biodiverse country (Butler, 2016). Bird diversity follows a similar trend; 1,170 species of birds have been seen within United States borders, but Columbia, which shares large swaths of rainforest with Brazil, has recorded 1,881 species in an area nine times smaller (ebird.org). Thus, it seems logical that the majority of conservation efforts should focus on these Central and South American countries. Lindsey et al (2017) developed conservation scores for countries across the world based on the ecological contribution (number of species present), protected area contribution (percentage of habitat protected), and financial contribution (percentage of GDP allocated to conservation). By multiplying the three scores together, Lindsey et al (2017) derived a conservation score for each country. Countries in Africa, with their large wildlife reserves for big cats, ranked highest, while countries in South America ranked lowest. Countries in North America ranked very high as well, coming in just behind Africa. The studies show that the countries with the highest biodiversity are benefitting least from conservation efforts.

Economic barriers contribute to this difference in conservation efforts between countries. Lindsey et al (2017) found that wealthy countries allocate a much higher percentage of their GDP to conservation efforts than developing countries, widening the gap in conservation efforts between wealthy and developing countries. The United States has ten times the amount of total wealth as all Latin American countries combined, so it seems logical that these developing countries would devote much less funding towards conservation. Therefore, in order to encourage developing countries to implement conservation efforts, it seems necessary to provide financial incentives for conservation.

Despite the barriers that have limited conservation efforts, numerous initiatives that benefit migratory birds are demonstrating that these barriers can be overcome. One particularly successful project has been to promote the production of shade grown coffee. Coffee is a major crop in Central and South America and is “second to only oil in dollar amount and trade importance” (Seavey 2003). With such a large impact on the global economy, large amounts of land in Central and South America are dedicated to growing coffee. Like many other crops, coffee has been grown as a monoculture at the expense of rainforests. Therefore, some farmers have begun switching to growing coffee plants directly under the canopy of the rainforest. Seavey (2003) surveyed shade-grown coffee plantations in Central America and found 24 species of migratory songbirds that use them. To raise awareness of the benefits of buying shade grown coffee in the US, the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center began offering Central and South American Countries a Bird Friendly® certification for their shade grown coffee. Numerous American companies such as Trader Joes and Starbucks have begun selling shade-grown coffee grown from Central and South American farms. The increase in publicity of shade-grown coffee may encourage more farmers to make the switch.

One bird species in particular needs international cooperation to be saved from possible extinction. The Spoon-billed Sandpiper, with a population of only about 250 individuals, is one of world’s rarest and most beautiful birds. It nests in the Siberian tundra and winters in the marshes of Thailand. Few people can access its remote nesting grounds in Siberia, and there are several protected reserves for this species and other shorebirds in Thailand, and yet Spoon-billed Sandpiper populations, along with other shorebird populations, have plummeted recently (Weidensaul 2018). The reason for this decline lies within their migration route between Thailand and their Siberian nesting grounds. They stop at the Yellow Sea of China, where many marshes that these birds rely on are being converted to salt-making ponds. “The rate of estuary loss… was more than 100,000 acres per year,” says Weidensaul. It was clear something urgent needed to be done to save the remaining marshlands for Spoon-billed Sandpipers, and international cooperation proved to be the answer. “U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson… has worked closely with the Chinese government on wetland conservation issues,” writes Weidensaul. The Chinese government proceeded to plan restoration of tens of thousands of hectares of land along the Yellow Sea back to its original, marshy state. However, the issues facing the Yellow Sea can not be solved entirely through policy. Once again, social and economic issues are barriers to successful conservation. The depletion of fish stocks in Yellow Sea, has led fishermen to turn to hunting shorebirds, including the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, by setting up nets along the shore that trap the birds (Weidensaul 2018). Although this type of hunting is illegal, it is very difficult for the Chinese government to regulate it, meaning it will continue unless local communities find ways to make a living through sustainable fishing and hunting. Conservation organizations can play a role in shaping these decisions through education and financial incentives in turn for the protection of birdlife.

Many birds have symbolic meaning and cultural importance to us. Jimenez (2020) refers to birds as “shared symbols in our lives” that “connect us to places we have never been and to people we have never met.” Birds are capable of connecting people across borders; one day, a bird may be feeding in a residential backyard in Argentina; a week later, this same bird may be singing in a park in Wisconsin. Many migratory species hold cultural significance as well. For example, the Bar-tailed Godwit is a shorebird that completes an incredible 7000-mile journey from Alaska to New Zealand every year and its return to New Zealand marks good fortune and signifies the beginning of spring to the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. The Bar-tailed Godwit, however, uses the Yellow Sea during migration, and is therefore threatened by habitat loss and illegal hunting. Another migratory species of cultural importance is the Pacific Golden-Plover, which migrates between Alaska and Hawaii. Native Hawaiians believe that the Pacific Golden-Plover helped Polynesian explorers discover the Hawaiian Islands and consider this bird to be a protector spirit (Jimenez 2020). The importance of migratory species to many cultures provides further incentive for protecting these species along their migratory routes.

Protecting the breeding, wintering, and migration ranges of migratory birds requires the cooperation of many countries. Economic and political barriers present as challenges to successful conservation, but conservation efforts such as shade-grown coffee and protection of the Yellow Sea show that these barriers can be overcome. Much work remains to be done, however. We have lost three billion birds over the past 50 years (Axelson 2019), and climate change will likely accelerate declines in many species. However, providing safe areas to these birds across their ranges is a step in the right direction. World Migratory Bird Day (May 8, 2021), created in 1993, is a holiday designed to spread awareness of the need for international protection, and provides hope that this protection will continue to increase. Birds are citizens of the world which deserve global protection and we can be part of the solution to the global conservation challenge. We can help migratory birds by purchasing bird-friendly shade grown coffee which is available at local Whole Foods Stores.

Bibliography

Axelson, Gustave. “Vanishing: More Than 1 in 4 Birds Has Disappeared in the Last 50 Years.” Living Bird, 19 September 2019.

Butler, Rhett A. “Deforestation: facts, figures, and pictures.” Mongabay, 23 July 2020. https://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/

Butler, Rhett A. “The top 10 most biodiverse countries.” Mongabay, 21 May 2016. https://news.mongabay.com/2016/05/top-10-biodiverse-countries/

Lindsey, Peter A., et al. “Relative efforts of countries to conserve world’s megafauna.” Global Ecology and Conservation, vol. 10, April 2017, pp. 243-252.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989416300804

Seavey, Jennifer. “Shade-grown Coffee and Northern Migratory Birds: What is the Link?” Birding, vol. 35, no. 1, February 2003, pp. 62-71

Weidensaul, Scott. “Losing Ground.” Living Bird, vol. 37, no. 4, Autumn 2018, pp. 42-55. Jimenez, Mikko. “These Mighty Birds Connect People Across the Pacific Ocean Every Year.” Audubon, 21 May 2020. https://www.audubon.org/news/these-mighty-birds-connect-people-across-pacific-ocean-every-year

Dessi Sieburth is a freshman at Stanford University, and he has been a birder since he was 8 years old. Dessi's interests include field ornithology as well as researching molt and non-native bird species. To learn more about Dessi, please check out his website, protectingourbirds.com.