declines

Bad news for birds

April 1, 2025 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The 2025 U.S. State of the Birds report was released recently. The report is produced by a coalition of leading science and conservation organizations. The bottom line is that there have been continued widespread declines in American bird populations across all mainland and marine habitats.

More than one-third of U.S. bird species are of high or moderate conservation concern. Among these, 112 are tipping point species that have lost more than 50% of their populations over the last 50 years.

Protecting bird species is not just about biodiversity and stewardship of nature. Wild birds have surprisingly large economic impact. Nearly 100 million Americans are engaged in birding activities which contribute substantially to local and state economies. The 2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation estimated that the total economic output related to bird watching activities was an amazing $279 billion and birding-related activities support 1.4 million jobs. Bird watching and other encounters with nature are beneficial for human well-being, including reducing stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms.

The rapid declines in birds are related to habitat loss, environmental degradation, and extreme weather events. Moreover, if conditions are not healthy for birds, they are unlikely to be healthy for people as well. Fortunately, many actions that are good for birds are good for us, so conservation efforts going forward are important.

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State of America’s birds: Population declines continue

Photo, posted October 30, 2018, courtesy of Shenandoah National Park via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Wildlife rebounding in Uganda

December 6, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The numbers of elephants, rhinos, and other animals in Uganda’s nature preserves is steadily improving, reversing the trend of steady declines previously caused by poachers, wildlife traffickers, and conflict.

Between the 1960s and 1980s, political conflict and lawlessness in Uganda led to massive declines in some species as poaching, trafficking, and encroachment ran rampant.

Uganda’s population of over 700 northern white and eastern black rhinos was completely wiped out in the early 1980s by people hunting them for their horns. A charity brought four rhinos in 2005 to a sanctuary called the Ziwa Rhino and Wildlife Ranch and, according to the Uganda Wildlife Authority, there are now 33 in the facility.

Increased conservation efforts have allowed the population of buffalos to increase 77% to over 44,000 since 1983. The number of elephants has surged almost 300% to nearly 8,000 over that same time period. There has also been an increase in the number of mountain gorillas in dense forests.

Over the years, the Ugandan government has brought in a string of conservation policies including lengthy jail terms for violations. As a result, wildlife populations have been on a steady recovery.

It is typical to think about species in terms of how close to extinction they are, but the ultimate goal of conservation is to recover species. This means not only gaining distance from extinction but also resuming a species’ role in its ecosystem and repopulating its former range. Whether the wildlife in Uganda is achieving this status remains to be seen, but the trends are very positive.

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Uganda Sees Resurgence of Rhinos, Elephants, Buffaloes

Photo, posted September 15, 2014, courtesy of Rod Waddington via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Coffee, cocoa, and pollinators

November 20, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Multiple forces have been at play that have been detrimental to pollinators including climate change, land use change, pesticide use, and more. There have been substantial declines in both the abundance and diversity of insect pollinators. There is increasing public awareness of this issue, but it hasn’t really risen all that high among many people’s concerns.

A new study by University College London looked at the effects of the global decline in pollinators on thousands of crop-growing sites around the world involving thousands of insect pollinator species.

About 75% of all crops grown depend on pollinators to some degree. The UCL research created a model that looks at which pollination dependent crops are most threatened over the next 30 years in order to provide a warning to both the agricultural and conservation communities.

The research indicates that the tropics are likely to be most at risk with regard to reduced crop production caused by pollinator losses. This is mostly due to the interaction of climate change and land use. The risks are highest in sub-Saharan Africa, northern South America, and southeast Asia.

These areas are where the world gets most of its coffee and cocoa, two crops that are near and dear to most of us. These crops, as well as others such as mangoes, play vital roles in both local economies and global trade and reducing them could lead to increased income insecurity for millions of small-scale farmers in these tropical regions.

If pollinator loss isn’t high up on your list of global concerns, perhaps you should think about it next time you have a cup of coffee or enjoy some chocolate.

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Coffee and cocoa plants at risk from pollinator loss

Photo, posted May 23, 2013, courtesy of McKay Savage via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A Groundwater Crisis | Earth Wise

September 22, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The majority of U.S. drinking water systems rely on groundwater, as do America’s farms. Even though groundwater is a crucial resource for the country, there is no central oversight or even monitoring of its status across the country. The health of the country’s aquifers is difficult to gauge.

The New York Times spent months amassing data from 80,000 wells across the country by reaching out to federal, state, and local agencies nationwide.

The survey found that 45% of the wells examined showed a statistically significant decline in water levels since 1980. Forty percent of the sites reached record-low water levels over the past 10 years, with last year the worst yet.

Over pumping is the biggest problem. State regulations tend to be weak and there is no federal oversight. The warming climate reduces snowpack, which means less water in rivers, increasing the need to tap into groundwater. Warmer weather means thirstier plants, increasing the demand for water.

It is a nationwide problem, not just one in the drought-ridden West. Arkansas, which produces half of the country’s rice, is pumping groundwater twice as fast as nature can replace it. Three-quarters of Maryland’s wells have seen substantial drops in water levels.

As groundwater is pumped out, the empty space can collapse under the weight of the rock and soil above it, permanently diminishing the capacity for future groundwater storage.

There are likely to be parts of the U.S. that run out of drinking water and groundwater depletion threatens America’s status as an agricultural superpower. Objectively, the status of American groundwater is a crisis that threatens the long-term survival of communities and industries that depend on it.

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Five Takeaways From Our Investigation Into America’s Groundwater Crisis

Photo, posted July 25, 2009, courtesy of Chris Happel via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Large Lakes In Decline | Earth Wise

June 27, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Globally, freshwater lakes and reservoirs hold 87% of the planet’s liquid freshwater, making them a valuable resource for both people and wildlife. Despite their value, the long-term trends and changes to water levels of lakes have been largely unknown – until now.

According to a new assessment recently published in the journal Science, more than half of the largest lakes around the world are losing water. Using satellite observations and climate data, the research team created a technique to measure changes in water levels in nearly 2,000 of the world’s biggest lakes and reservoirs, representing 95% of the total lake water storage on Earth.

The results are staggering. According to the findings, 53% of Earth’s largest lakes and reservoirs now store significantly less water than they did in 1992. The total amount of water lost is estimated to be 144.5 cubic miles, which is equivalent to the volume of 17 Lake Meads (the largest reservoir in the U.S.).

Unsurprisingly, climate warming and human consumption were the main drivers of water loss from lakes, whereas sedimentation — the buildup of debris — was the biggest driver of water loss in reservoirs. Roughly one-quarter of the world’s population – two billion people – live in the basin of a drying lake, indicating the urgent need for sustainable water resources management.

But the news is not entirely bleak. According to the research team, the new method of tracking lake water storage trends can give water managers and communities insight into how to better protect this critical resource.

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Satellites reveal widespread decline in global lake water storage

Photo, posted February 10, 2010, courtesy of Ninara via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Coral Reefs And Ecosystem Services

October 18, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

A new study led by the University of British Columbia provides the first comprehensive look at what climate change, overfishing, and habitat destruction of coral reefs mean for their ecosystem services. For humans, this means how the global decline in coral reefs has affected their ability to provide essential benefits including food, livelihoods, and protection from storms.

The study found that global coverage of living corals has declined by about half since the 1950s and the diversity of reef species has declined by more than 60%. So, it is no surprise that there has been a significant loss in the ability of reefs to provide ecosystem services.

The study analyzed data from coral reef surveys around the world, fisheries catches, indigenous consumption, and more. Apart from the declines in reef coverage and biodiversity, the study found that fish catches on coral reefs peaked in 2002 and has steadily declined since then, despite increased fishing efforts.

The findings of the study led the researchers to conclude that continued degradation of coral reefs in the years to come threaten the well-being and sustainable development of millions of people in communities on the coast that depend on coral reefs. Fish and fisheries provide essential nutrients in places with few alternative sources of nutrition. Coral reef biodiversity and fisheries have added importance for indigenous communities, where important cultural relationships exist with reefs.

The study’s authors say that the results are a call to action. The level of destruction happening all over the world’s coral reefs is threatening people’s culture, their daily food, and their history. It is not just an environmental issue; it is a human rights issue.

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Photo, posted September 22, 2010, courtesy of David Burdick / NOAA Photo Library via Flickr.

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Carbon From 25 Cities | Earth Wise

September 10, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

There are roughly 10,000 cities in the world, defined as places with at least 50,000 inhabitants with a sufficient population density. Roughly half the world’s population lives in cities.

Urban carbon emissions are one of the world’s biggest problems with respect to the climate. A new study has determined that just 25 cities globally are responsible for 52% of urban greenhouse gas emissions.

The study gathered data on greenhouse gas emissions in 167 cities in 53 countries. The results were that megacities in Asia, such as Shanghai and Tokyo, were among the biggest total emitters, and that major cities in Europe, the US, and Australia tended to have larger per capita emissions. Several Chinese cities, however, matched levels seen in developed countries. Researchers tracked emissions over time in 42 of the cities studied. Some cities saw declining emissions in the period between 2005 and 2016. These included Oslo, Houston, Seattle, and Bogota. Others saw large increases, including Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, and Venice.

The largest sources of emissions are power generation, industry, and transportation. In a third of the cities, road transportation alone accounted for over 30% of emissions. (Railways, waterways, and aviation combined only accounted for less than 15% of total emissions).

Half of the world’s population lives in cities, but cities are responsible for more than 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, cities have a big responsibility for the decarbonization of the global economy. Of the 167 cities in the study, 113 have set emission-reduction targets. But as the study shows, cities have much more work to do to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.

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Two Dozen Large Cities Produce 52 Percent of Urban Carbon Emissions

Photo, posted December 1, 2017, courtesy of Hector Galbis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A New Fishway Technology | Earth Wise

February 5, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Freshwater fish populations have declined by more than 80% over the past forty years across the globe. This is in part due to hundreds of thousands of dams, weirs, and barriers stopping their movements. These river barriers have disrupted fish reproduction cycles the world over by preventing river fish from migrating to spawn.

Fishways or fish ladders are waterways constructed on or around obstructions in order to provide passageways for fish and other aquatic species. Often, they consist of a series of small overflow weirs and pools constructed in the form of steps. Fish need to jump from one pool to another to migrate to the upstream. Such fish ladders require a large space to construct. These and several other types of fishways tend to be expensive to install and maintain and are not always successful in allowing fish to get to where they need to go.

Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia have come up with an ingenious new type of fishway. Called a “tube fishway”, it is a low-cost and low-energy installation that works by pumping fish at high velocity – protected by a cushion of bubbly water – through a tube running over the obstructing barrier to deliver them safely into the water on the other side.

They successfully demonstrated a prototype system on a rugged slope behind a campus building that transported fish from one tank to another about 25 feet up the slope.

Fish are attracted into the chamber by suitable geometry and the system uses the energy available from the upper reservoir to lift the fish. Modeling shows that the system will work for pipes as large as three feet in diameter and could lift fish more than 300 feet vertically.

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New fishway technology to get fish up and over those dam walls

Photo, posted October 19, 2019, courtesy of Andrew Harvey via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Climate Change and Komodo Dragons | Earth Wise

October 12, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The Komodo dragon is the world’s largest and most iconic lizard. Growing up to 10 feet long and weighing up to 360 pounds, Komodo dragons are endemic to five islands in southeast Indonesia, four of which are part of Komodo National Park, as well as a fifth that has three nature reserves. Komodo dragons have existed on earth for at least four million years, and it’s estimated that 4,000 of them survive in the wild today.

But according to a new study by researchers from the University of Adelaide and Deakin University in Australia, Komodo dragons could soon be driven to extinction. The research team found that the impacts of both global warming and sea level rise are likely to cause a sharp decline in available habitat for Komodo dragons. Current conservation strategies are not enough to avoid climate-driven Komodo dragon population declines.

The study, which was recently published in the journal Ecology and Evolution, involved close collaboration with Komodo National Park and the Eastern Lesser Sunda Central Bureau for Conservation of Natural Resources.

Climate-change-informed decisions should be a common part of conservation practice. According to the research team’s conservation model, Komodo dragons on two of the five Indonesian islands are less vulnerable to climate change. But those two islands might not be enough for the survival of the species. Conservation managers may need to translocate Komodo dragons in the future – to sites where these animals have not been found for decades – in order to protect the species from extinction.

Without taking immediate action to mitigate climate change, the research team says many range-restricted species like Komodo dragons are at risk of extinction.

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Climate change threatens Komodo dragons

Photo, posted August 6, 2016, courtesy of Tony Alter via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Sharks On The Decline | Earth Wise

September 4, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

During the past 70 years, global shark populations have been on the decline. Many species have become threatened or endangered. Conservation efforts have been underway in many places, but shark populations continue to be at risk because of over-fishing and habitat loss.

A comprehensive study by marine biologists at Texas A&M University deployed more than 15,000 baited remote underwater video stations on 371 coral reefs in 58 countries. The study included 59 different shark species in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. The researchers were surprised to find that no sharks at all were detected in almost 20% of the locations surveyed and were almost completely absent from coral reefs in several nations.

Scientists believe that demand for shark products, such as fins and meat, and bycatch (that is, sharks captured in nets by fisherman trapping other kinds of fish) are strong contributors to the widespread declines in shark numbers around the world.

The study shows that if corrective steps are not taken in regions where marine management is still ineffective, continued depletion of shark populations is highly likely.

Sharks have important roles in marine ecosystems. When their habitats deteriorate and their populations decrease, ecosystem stability and health is degraded because sharks help regulate prey populations.

Some countries, notably the Bahamas, are combating the problem by providing sanctuaries for sharks where fishing and harvesting is prohibited. Such places support some of the healthiest shark populations in the world. However, the decline of coral reefs is just another challenge facing shark populations around the world.

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Study Shows Alarming Decline In Shark Numbers Around The World

Photo, posted January 9, 2017, courtesy of Kris-Mikael Krister via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Wildlife Rediscoveries

March 30, 2017 By EarthWise

We recently brought you the rediscovery story of cave squeakers. These tiny frogs, known for their high-pitched whistling calls, were native to the mountainous region of eastern Zimbabwe but had not been seen since 1962. That all changed in late 2016, when researchers found four cave squeakers, confirming that after 58 years the species was not extinct. Cave squeakers remain critically endangered according to the IUCN’s Red List of Endangered Species.

Squeaking By

March 14, 2017 By EarthWise

Amphibians are one of the most threatened groups of animals on the planet. Since the late 1980s, scientists have measured dramatic population declines from locations all over the world. The plummeting amphibian populations are perceived to be one of the most critical threats to global biodiversity. According to the IUCN, about 1 of every 3 amphibian species is facing extinction. Some of the greatest threats facing amphibians include climate change, disease, and habitat destruction.

[Read more…] about Squeaking By

The Great Salt Lake Is Shrinking

January 9, 2017 By EarthWise

Utah’s Great Salt Lake is the largest salt water lake in the Western Hemisphere and is the largest body of water in the United States after the five Great Lakes. When the pioneers first arrived in the area back in the middle of the 19th century, the lake spread across about 1,600 square miles. Now, the lake covers an area of only about 1,050 square miles, a reduction of about 35%.