Golden-winged warblers are one of the North American species most at risk for complete extinction.
Credit: Caleb Putnam/flickr/cc

North America has lost more than a billion birds over the past 40 years, says the most comprehensive survey of landbird populations in Canada and the U.S. to date, and 86 species are threatened with total extinction—all thanks to human-caused habitat destruction and climate change. (emphasis added)

“Among those 86 species, 22 have already lost at least half of their population since 1970 and are projected to lose another 50 percent of their numbers within the next 40 years,” reports the Canadian Press. “For at least six species, this ‘half-life’ window is fewer than 20 years.”

“The information on urgency is quite alarming,” said co-author Judith Kennedy of Environment Canada to the Canadian Press. “We’re really getting down to the dregs of some of these populations.”

“I don’t want my grandchild to […]