Birds of Prey: The Fierce and the Scarce Species

By: ​Sobhie Nazal

Summary.  The environment is very crucial and needs to be tended to in ways of which benefits the future of animals starting with their present lifestyles. According to the article "Birds of Prey Face Global Decline From Habitat Loss and Poisons", current habitats of birds of prey are not being guarded responsibly or considerably, causing a decline of habitats for these helpless animals and a scarcity of population. The slowly diminishing habitats are the reasons these species can not stand a chance and their numbers continuously decrease. Although pesticides on animals are a great cause for toxins entering these species bodies causing them harm, they are not the only reason these birds are poisoned. The greatest killers accountable for the this cruelty results in the negligent actions made by humans. Some species of these birds like raptors, usually feed upon rodents and dead animals and rely on their food to survive. However, toxins like lead are habitually exposed in the foods they eat due to gun residue and ammunition from the firearms of hunters. Anti-inflammatory drugs injected into animals these species feed upon is another reasoning for the possessing destruction in regards to these birds. Drugs like these used on the animals the birds prey upon were an extensive reflection of the loss of 95% of vultures after devouring carcasses with the intent to eat in order to survive. This falls into the recklessness of humans being careless to the population or habitats of these now endangered animals. Habitats have been destructed by humans who made actions based off of inconsiderate decisions to knock down hundreds of trees and call for a reckoning upon these critical animals facing extinction due to shrunken habitats. Species that fall victim enormously to tree cutting and tree burning relate to many birds like, Harpy eagles with most of their population resulting in a 54% decline and a 47% depletion of Owls. These primary birds that take on the identity of critical predators of ecosystems are no longer serving their initial purpose as mentioned by bird scientist Gerardo Ceballos. What people fail to realize is that when an animal is at the verge of extinction it is a threat to us all. This begins to affect ecosystems, life cycles, and the world all together as a whole. It should be of deep deliberation and focus to aim at a better life, better future, and better restorative approach as a society to help aid these birds of prey that deserve to live fierce and not become scarce.

Why we should care? We should care about this topic because it effects both the lives of animals and disrupts the life cycle.

Photo Credit: https://birdeden.com/largest-bird-of-prey

Example Article.

https://nypost.com/2021/08/31/birds-of-prey-face-global-decline-from-habitat-loss-poisons/

This article was positively content heavy and filled with information. What struck my interests the most about this article was the statistics given. The direct numbers of losses and percentages of birds of prey that have continued to decrease over time due to their habitats, really struck my interests and curiosity. This article is really interesting because it uses a few pictures to engage and entertain their community of readers showing a sense of imagery that helps us identify birds of prey. This article was also very pleasing because many very well known scientists and researchers were a part of this article and input their own personal findings or opinions in coordination with their prior investigations to help make a better clarification or understanding on statistical findings, making it more of an eyeopener to readers like myself. Nowadays many people overlook the problems animals are facing becoming nearly extinct and their homes being destroyed, and I think people need to come to a realization to try and protect the homes of animals to ensure a healthy longevity of life for birds of prey.

Science in Action.

Dr. Gerardo Ceballos is a Full Time Senior Researcher and Scientist at the UNAM Institute of Ecology.

Gerardo Ceballos is a very acclaimed bird scientist known to many people and researches topics with high relevance to the environment and the way we live and how it affects certain individuals or species. Gerardo studies issues of ecology and conversation and connects his findings to help humans utilize more efficient sustainability in the world. His research is a very essential key component to our environment and also has a great relevance to my blog topic. Gerardo and his experiments help bring awareness to endangered species which directly coordinates with my blog topic on birds of prey and the scarcity of these birds along with their habitats.