The apocalypse of migration: the need for rapid protection for the most vulnerable migratory species, and how climate change affects the world’s biodiversity
Human activity is pushing these species to the brink. There are concrete steps people can take to safeguard their futures. There are some success stories in the first stocktake of the world’s migratory species. It just goes to show that it’s not too late to act; it just has to be fast because the clock is ticking for many of the billions of animals that migrate each year.
Habitat loss from humans and overexploitation of fish were identified as the two greatest threats to migratory species. The report found that pollution, including light and sound pollution, and climate change are having profound impacts.
“These are magnificent species that take unbelievable journeys, in some cases, that are economically beneficial [for humans], as well as the stuff of poetry and song and cultural significance,” said Amy Fraenkel, executive secretary of the UN Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals.
They are sometimes in some cases. Animals are crossing roads and fences due to wildlife crossings. Regulations help prevent overconsumption of some threatened fish and mammals. Habitat protections are giving species a leg up.
The report raises concern over the planet’s non-human inhabitants. A 2019 assessment on the world’s biodiversity found that 1 million of the Earth’s estimated 8 million species are at risk of extinction, many within decades, because of human activities like overconsumption, deforestation, pollution and development. A 2022 report by the World Wildlife Fund found that wildlife populations have declined by an average of 69% in the last 50 years.
The change of seasons causes many species to migrate. Climate change is altering seasons, changing winters and shifting the timing of spring and fall. Birds in North America have their migrations documented by scientists who adjusted their timing to match those shifts. Not all are keeping pace with the rate of change, leading to what scientists call phenological asynchrony.
Status of the UNICEF Convention for Migratory Species (CMS) Report on the 7th International Committee for Environmental Quality (ISAP 2015)
The 133 countries that signed on to the Convention for Migratory Species will meet this week in Uzbek to chart a path forward.
Inger Andersen, the executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said that the recommendations need to be made because of the precarious situation of the animals.
A whopping 97 percent of fish species on the CMS list are threatened with extinction. That includes the silky shark that lives in warm tropical waters around the world. It’s one of the most-caught species of shark in the world — either finding itself tangled in fishing lines or hunted for its meat and fins.
70 species listed in the CMS have moved to a category close to extinction on the Red List since 1988.
One such unlucky creature is the Egyptian vulture, which the IUCN has declared “endangered.” The birds have traditionally been an example of good health and a sign of spring around the Mediterranean. They’re losing ground in agriculture and urban development all over the world.
Since 1999, their numbers have been shrinking 35 percent each year in India alone. Drugs given to livestock and ultimately eaten by the scavengers could be responsible for their deaths.
The Threat of extinction is getting worse for migratory animals: Climate change impacts the young population of sea turtles and other endangered species
Sea turtles and other migratory species face more challenges due to climate change. They’re losing beaches to sea level rise and erosion, and the sea walls people put up to try to protect themselves from those threats can cut turtles off from their breeding areas.
The temperature of the sand affects the sex of a hatchling of a green sea turtle. The warmer the sand, the more likely it is that a hatchling will be female, and so there are more females lately. A study shows that female turtles make up 99 percent of young turtles.
Solutions to these problems aren’t out of reach. The effects of light pollution on wildlife are mitigated by dimmer and motion sensor-activated streetlights. Clean energy removes pollution that causes climate change.
Source: The threat of extinction is getting worse for migratory animals
Saiga antelope recovers and the whale is making a comeback: Conservation efforts, climate change, and the carbon footprint of the Earth
Conservation efforts brought the Saiga antelope back from near extinction, the report points out. This prehistoric species survived the ice age, outliving the wooly mammoth. Even so, its numbers dwindled down to less than 50,000 individuals in Kazakhstan in 2006 after poaching and disease decimated their herds. Efforts to restore steppe and wetland habitats in Kazakhstan and work with local communities to stop poaching allowed their population to recover to 1.3 million in Kazakhstan in 2022. The Saiga is no longer considered critically endangered, a rare but hopeful win.
The whale is making a comeback. In the 1700s and the 1800s, whaling produced whale oil which was used to light lamps and candles. Since protections were put in place, and as people found other sources of fuel, their numbers have grown back to 93 percent of what their population was pre-whaling in the western South Atlantic. It’s now considered a “species of least concern” by the IUCN.
In their recovery, whales even help to slow global warming. A study estimates that Humpbacks, along with 11 other whales, collectively hold 2 million metric ton of carbon in their bodies. Even so, while that might be equivalent to preventing the annual emissions from five gas power plants, people could prevent far more pollution and environmental damage by switching to clean energy. Tackling climate change was another one of the key recommendations the report makes.