Bird Extinction Rate Rising Alarmingly
Human activities have made hundreds of bird species disappear from the face of the earth. Around 279 bird species and subspecies have already been wiped off the earth’s surface during the past 5000 years, a new study suggests.
The extinction rate was on the rise in the early 1900s and slowly started to decline. But according to the new research, it peaked again since the middle of the 20th century.
It is estimated that an additional 10 species will also disappear from the face of earth during the 21st century. Before the research, it was assumed that the extinction was going down.
A majority of bird species has turned extinct on the islands, especially in the Pacific. As per the study, the bird species like dodo (Raphidae), New Zealandwrens (Acanthisittidae), Hawaiian honeyeaters (Mohoidae), sandpipers (Scolopacidae) and owls (Strigidae) have long disappeared in the past 500 years.
Destruction of natural habitats is said to be the main reason behind this. Native island birds have vanished, ever since men began to visit those remote islands.
