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There are approximately 1200 species of birds on earth
with about 400 on the endangered list.
Of these U.S. birds, 90 are listed as endangered or threatened
under the Endangered Species Act. Another 124 additional species
are listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as being of
management concern, meaning that they may become candidates
for listing under the ESA without additional conservation action
or that special attention is warranted to prevent declines.
Of the 852 species found in the U.S., 778 are migratory nongame birds
and roughly 350 are migratory songbirds species. About 250 of these
songbirds are neotropical migrants.
Below is a list of some birds that are listed as being endangered,
the list is far from being a complete one.
California Condor
California Condors were listed as endangered in 1967. By 1982,
there were less than two dozen in the wild. Mating Condor pairs
produce only one egg every two years. Rescued from the brink of
extinction by an intense captive breeding program, as of
October 1, 2003 there was a total wild population of 83 and 137
in captivity. With a wingspan of over 9 feet, California Condors
can soar more than 100 miles per day on updrafts searching for food.
They have a life span of up to 60 years.
For info on the American Bald Eagle select the link below
The Bald Eagle Here
Eskimo Curlew
Now almost extinct, this shorebird once migrated in huge flocks
between its remote breeding grounds on the taiga to its wintering
grounds in Argentina. Each year, on its way there and back, it
faced a slaughter in fall, winter, and spring by gunners who
sometimes filled wagons with the birds.
By the beginning of the 1900s, the Eskimo curlew was
considered extinct, but a few sightings in the past decades in
Canada and the United States indicate the existence of a small
breeding population. The breeding grounds are yet to be
discovered in the North. The bird now has complete legal
protection
Galapagos Flightless Cormorant
The Galapagos flightless cormorant evolved in an isolated island
environment that was free of predators. The birds had no need to
fly and eventually became flightless. However, the Galapagos
Islands have not remained free of predators, and, consequently,
this cormorant is now one of the world’s rarest birds.
Through the years, dogs, cats, and pigs were introduced to
the Islands and have had a drastic effect on the cormorant
population. As well, these birds had no fear of man and could be
easily approached and picked up. There are now only about 1,000
flightless cormorants left and the species is listed as rare.
Imperial Parrot
Always considered scarce, the imperial parrot is now an
endangered species, and is found only in the mountain rainforest
of Dominica in the Leeward Islands. Logging destroyed much of the
bird’s habitat, and hunting for food and sport, although
unlawful, reduced the population until, by 1992, only 80 to 120
A hurricane in 1979 caused tremendous destruction of the
rainforest, especially in the newly established national park,
and brought about a total ban on hunting. Of great importance to
their survival will be effective law enforcement, public
education, and protection of the remaining rain forest. Captive
specimens have never bred successfully.
Ivory-billed Woodpecker
The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is still listed as an endangered bird,
despite being declared extinct in 1997. Brief sightings were reported
from Cuba in the early 1980's, but no solid evidence that the birds
still exist has been collected since then. No one has actually seen
the bird for more than 30 years in the United States.
Japanese Crested Ibis
Until the late 1800s, this ibis nested over a huge area of
mainland Asia and Japan. With the cutting of pine woodlands,
where it nested, and the use of pesticides in rice paddies and
marshlands, which were its feeding grounds, the bird’s numbers
declined drastically. It is now designated in Japan as a Special
Bird for Protection, and in Korea as National Treasure No. 198.
It also has full legal protection in the former USSR. Currently,
there are about 40 birds in the wild which survive in South
Shaanxi, China.
Piping Plover
"Unspoiled, undisturbed, clean, sandy beaches on seashores and
inland lakes" describes ideal vacation sites. It also describes
the ideal nesting requirements of the piping plover, in its
breeding range from the Maritimes to Virginia and from the Great
Lakes to Alberta and Nebraska.
Once considered a game bird and exposed to many years of
spring and fall shooting, it had declined drastically by the
early 1900s. Legal protection as a migratory, non-game bird
allowed it to make a recovery, but with the increased
recreational use of beaches, the plover's survival, particularly
in the east, is again threatened.
Peregrin Falcon
Although egg-collecting, capturing young birds for falconry,
the disturbance of nesting sites, and hunting have affected the
peregrine falcon population, a serious decline was not noted
until 1947. In 1960 it was found that this decline was related to
the widespread use of pesticides, mainly DDT, which was banned in
Canada in 1971 and in the United States in 1972.
The peregrine falcon has today disappeared from most of
eastern North America and certain of the continent's remaining
populations are on the endangered list. Young, captive peregrines
from the far north have been experimentally released in suitable
eastern habitats, even on high, cliff-like city buildings, and
fed until able to hunt for themselves. There may be hope that
such measures will re-introduce the species in the eastern part
of the continent.
Trumpeter Swan
The trumpeter swan, largest and rarest of the world's eight swan
species, was once a common nesting bird in north, west, and
central North America. It was hunted extensively by natives for
food and feathers, and its numbers began to decline when a market
developed in European settlements for its skin, feathers, down,
and quills. The decline continued with the gradual loss of
nesting, feeding, and wintering habitats, especially in the
United States, to expanded land use. By the early 1900s, the
bird's extinction was thought near. Now legally protected in
Canada and the United States and provided with sanctuaries, its
numbers have slowly increased through emergency winter feeding,
habitat restoration, and controlled relocation of populations.
Trumpeter swans presently number more than 5,000, of which about
500 pairs nest in Canada. Although still carefully monitored,
they have been removed from the list of endangered species
White Pelican
This well-known fish-eater found on remote treeless islands has
very specific nesting requirements. The nesting colonies are
distributed mostly from the Canadian prairie, south to southern
California and the Texas Gulf Coast. Almost half of the birds
nest in Canada. The white pelican, however, is a threatened
species. Since 1900, 26 colonies in Canada have been abandoned,
leaving only 29 to carry on. The greatest cause of this continued
slow decline has been human disturbance, which prompts desertion
of the nests and nesting islands for the year, or permanently.
The survival of the white pelican will depend on increased
protection for the bird's nesting grounds in national and
provincial parks and other reserves, and the extension of legal
protection to the bird's nesting islands, which are not presently
protected.
Whooping Crane
Never very abundant, the whooping crane suffered in the late
1800s from indiscriminate shooting, habitat disturbance, and the
draining of the large, isolated marshes that it frequented. In
1941 there were only 21 wild birds and two captives remaining.
Today there are 300 whooping cranes in the world. The species is
still on the endangered list and is carefully monitored.
Total legal protection, public interest, protected breeding
grounds in Canada and wintering grounds in the United States,
along with artificial incubation, foster parenting by sandhill
cranes and the establishment of an additional breeding flock in
Idaho, have all helped in rescuing the whooping crane from
extinction.
Threatened or Endangered Birds in the U.S.
Akepa, Hawaii
E Akepa, Maui
E Akialoa, Kauai
Akiapola`au
Albatross, short-tailed
Blackbird, yellow-shouldered
Bobwhite, masked
Cahow
Caracara, Audubon's crested
Condor, California
Coot, Hawaiian
Crane, Mississippi sandhill
Crane, whooping
Creeper, Hawaii
Creeper, Molokai
Creeper, Oahu
Crow, Hawaiian
Crow, Mariana
Crow, white-necked
Curlew, Eskimo
Duck, Hawaiian
Duck, Laysan
Eagle, bald
Eider, spectacled
Eider, Steller's
Elepaio, Oahu
Falcon, northern aplomado
Finch, Laysan
Finch, Nihoa
Flycatcher, southwestern willow
Gnatcatcher, coastal California
Goose, Hawaiian
Hawk, Hawaiian
Hawk, Puerto Rican broad-winged
Hawk, Puerto Rican sharp-shinned
Honeycreeper, crested
Jay, Florida scrub
Kingfisher, Guam Micronesian
Kite, Everglade snail
Megapode, Micronesian
Millerbird, Nihoa
Moorhen, Hawaiian common
Moorhen, Mariana common
Murrelet, marbled
Nightjar, Puerto Rican
Nukupu`u
`O`o, Kauai, honeyeater
`O`u, honeycreeper
Owl, Mexican spotted
Owl, northern spotted
Palila
Parrot, Puerto Rican
Parrotbill, Maui
Pelican, brown
Petrel, Hawaiian dark-rumped
Pigeon, Puerto Rican plain
Plover, piping
Plover, western snowy
Po`ouli, honeycreeper
Prairie-chicken, Attwater's greater
Pygmy-owl
Rail, California clapper
Rail, Guam
Rail, light-footed clapper
Rail, Yuma clapper
Shearwater, Newell's Townsend's
Shrike, San Clemente loggerhead
Sparrow, Cape Sable seaside
Sparrow, Florida grasshopper
Sparrow, San Clemente sage
Stilt, Hawaiian
Stork, wood
Swiftlet, Mariana gray
Tern, California least
Tern, least
Tern, roseate
Thrush, large Kauai
Thrush, Molokai
Thrush, small Kauai
Towhee, Inyo California
Vireo, black-capped
Vireo, least Bell's
Warbler, Bachman's
Warbler, golden-cheeked
Warbler, Kirtland's
Warbler, nightingale reed
White-eye, bridled
White-eye, Rota bridled
Woodpecker, ivory-billed
See Also:
Prehistoric Birds
Extinct Birds
Birds in Mythology
Endangered Species Act
List of Endangered Species
Entertaining Stuffed Plush Birds
Eye Catching Bird Calendars
