DNA samples from museum specimens have again proved useful in discovering what conservation actions can help endangered species. For the critically endangered regent honeyeater, the answer is to protect its Australian habitat.
Scientists trying to save endangered species are finding help in museum collections. It has been shown that using DNA specimens from old specimens to understand evolution and threats to their survival.
White-tailed sea eagles in Germany were tested for the stress hormone corticosterone, levels of which were particularly high in birds nesting close to roads and paths. This has implications for tourist use in areas of high eagle density.
New research has found that habitat loss is a major concern for hundreds of Australian bird species, threatened as well as non-threatened, and south-eastern Australia has been the worst affected.
New Zealand has a long history of bird extinctions caused by human activity. Scientists have estimated that it would take 50 million years to recover lost bird species, and if birds currently under threat are allowed to go extinct, it would take 10 million years to recover them.
An in-depth study of the northern spotted owl has examined its decline in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Removal of the invasive barred owl may be one solution, in combination with long-term protection of its habitat.
The critically endangered Seychelles paradise flycatcher has been successfully relocated to another island, a crucial milestone in the recovery of a bird seriously threatened by habitat loss.
A study in Finland looking at changes in bird populations has revealed that protected areas help to slow down the north-bound retreat of species as the planet warms due to climate change.
The combined threat of deforestation and wildlife exploitation has been severely underestimated for bird populations in Southeast Asia. This could lead to some species becoming extinct.
Researchers have discovered why the brown tree snake has become such a successful invasive species on the island of Guam, where it has devastated native bird populations.