Over 100 bird species under threat

Going the way of the dodo?

- Post Report, Kathmandu

Mar 4, 2016- As many as 167 bird species are likely to go the way of the dodo, as they face a host of challenges for survival ranging from habitat loss and degradation to climate change, according to a new study on national status of bird species from Nepal.

The first ever assessment of the national conservation status of Nepal’s birds released on Thursday, said that loss of forests, wetlands and grasslands due to human encroachment for settlements, agriculture and unsustainable resource extraction such as logging for local and commercial use and sand and gravel mining along the river beds are driving nearly 20 percent of the total 878 bird species recorded in the country towards extinction.

Large birds such as birds of prey, storks and pheasants that are found in lowland grassland are the most threatened species followed by wetland birds and tropical and subtropical forest birds. Similarly, habitats in the Tarai, Kathmandu and Pokhara Valleys are under huge pressure as these are the most densely populated areas.

The National Red List of Nepal’s birds under the ongoing National Red Lists of Nepal launched in 2009, a collaborative project between the government of Nepal and various conservation organisations including Zoological Society of London and BirdLife International, has assessed the national status of threatened bird species in Nepal.

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