North American Bird Winter Ranges Moving Northward
The northward and inland movement of North American birds, confirmed by thousands of citizen-observations, provides new and powerful evidence that global warming is having a serious and measurable impact on North American bird species, according to new analyses by Audubon scientists.
National Audubon Society Releases Report on Climate Change Impacts on North American bird Species
The northward and inland movement of North American birds, confirmed by thousands of citizen-observations, provides new and powerful evidence that global warming is having a serious and measurable impact on North American bird species, according to new analyses by Audubon scientists.
Analyses of citizen-gathered data from the past 40 years of Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count (CBC) reveal that 177 (58 percent) of the 305 widespread species that winter on the continent shifted significantly north since 1968, some by hundreds of miles. 140 of these species are found in Oregon. Movement was detected among species of every type, including more than 70 percent of highly adaptable forest and feeder birds.
Population shifts among individual species are common, fluctuate, and can have many causes. However, Audubon scientists say the ongoing trend of movement by some 177 species—closely correlated to long-term winter temperature increases—reveals a strong correlation to the changing climate.
Links
Press Release
Report Summary
Technical Report
Climate Change Report Q&A
Table of Species Analyzed (by species)
Table of Species Analyzed (by state)
What You Can Do To Help
National Audubon Society Climate Change Website
