Climate change is causing a drastic reduction in the populations of bird species. barn swallow (hirundo rustica). SEO/BirdLife estimates A million specimens of this emblematic species go missing in Spain each year., one of the most appreciated by citizens. In the rest of Europe the situation is even worse.
this Decreasing barn swallow population is worrying: It was 41% between 1998 and 2012, and it was 33% in the last ten years. Moreover, according to a report by the NGO, the probability of extinction in the Iberian Peninsula within the next hundred years is 10%. Despite all this, the swallow is currently listed as a threatened species in only four autonomous communities: Andalusia, the Balearic Islands, Castilla-La Mancha, and Extremadura.
One of the criteria that the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers to classify species into different threat categories is precisely rapid population decline. This is one of the values that can be detected thanks to the data obtained from the Sacre common bird tracking program from SEO/BirdLife.
“Shrike, Quail, Western Jackdaw, Barn Swallow, Little Owl, Little Lark, and Dartford Warbler are species like Little Little Bustard that should be listed in the ‘vulnerable’ category at least as their populations have fallen by more than 30% over the past 14 years,” NGO’ ‘The trend in common bird populations in Spain (Sacre program) 1998-2020’” draws attention.
Of all these species, only the gray shrike is listed as ‘endangered’ in Spain, while the jackdaw, swallow, small owl, lark and arrow-tailed warbler have not yet been evaluated.
One of the factors affecting the decline in the barn swallow population is rural depopulation as it implies abandonment of breeding sites, often associated with agricultural environments. His fall led SEO/BirdLfe to declare him ‘Bird of the Year 2014’.
The main problem in cities is that modern buildings do not have holes and corners where these and other bird species can build their nests.
In addition, the use of insecticides, pesticides and other chemical products affects the reproductive capacity of swallows and destroys most of the insects they feed on. A single swallow eats 850 flies and mosquitoes.which is more than 310,000 per year.
After traveling 5,000 kilometers, they come to our homes.
“An 18 gram swallow fresh from the Sahel, Crossing the Sahara and traveling 5,000 kilometersSpecies Conservation technician and SEO/BirdLife delegate in Asturias, Castilla y León and Galicia highlights biologist Nicolás López and urges the population to protect their nests and nests. Pay attention to the eaves and corners from which they are made.
López also offers to star “help gestures” for swallowsFor example, making artificial nests or making it easier for them to access materials such as mud or straw to build them.
SEO/BirdLife’s assessments are in tandem with different scientific studies in recent years, such as “The effects of climate change on birds” published by Carlos Cano Barbacil and Javier Cano Sánchez in 2017.
This report warned of behavioral changes in many species, including the prospect of migratory phenology, changes in geographic distribution, and most serious of all, the risk of species extinction.
“Pioneers of climate change detection”
The conclusion of the two Spanish scientists was that global warming is “a major threat to the planet’s ecosystems,” but they also stressed that birds can be seen as “precursors of detection of climate change.”
Since climate change also caused the early migration of swallows: they are currently arriving in Spain four weeks in advance Compared to what happened in the middle of the last century.
Another impact of climate change: Over the years there has been an increase in the number of sub-Saharan migratory birds wintering in Spain. In the case of the barn swallow, this behavior has increased significantly over the past decade.
SEO/BirdLife points out that the mechanisms by which migratory birds such as swallows can adapt their cycles to new climatic conditions are the progression at the beginning of migration, increased migration rate and decreased migration distance.
But species adaptation takes time, and some scientists predict that European species that fail to advance their lifecycles far enough into the new scenario will experience declines in populations. This may already be happening with swallows.
Birds and Weather Program
Therefore, the recording of phenological observations is extremely important for the future of species such as the barn swallow. SEO/BirdLife’s Birds and Climate program collaborates with knowledge of the consequences of climate change on fauna and flora, and provides tools to each collaborate as much as possible to mitigate this “planetary problem”.
Birds and Climate, mobile phone apps allow recording of observations about when the first swallows arrived, when the almond trees bloomed, or when the first bees flew. These are data that provide invaluable information that allows us to know how climate change is affecting living things.
Sacred Program: https://www.seo.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Resultados_generales_sacre_121.pdf
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Environment department contact address:crisclimatica@prensaiberica.es
Source: Informacion
