State of the Birds 2022

We Can Bend the Curve to Bring Birds Back

The United States and Canada have lost 3 billion breeding birds since 1970—a loss of 1 in 4 birds, according to research published in Science in 2019. This steep decline in abundance can be reversed with new scales of conservation actions that benefit not only birds but also wildlife and people. When birds thrive, we all win.

State of the Birds at a Glance

Action Needed—70 Bird Species Are at a Tipping Point

The State of the Birds 2022 report sounds an alarm about steep population losses in virtually all habitats. The report identifies 70 Tipping Point species that have lost half or more of their breeding population since 1970, and are on tract to lose another half or more in the next 50 years.

So let’s help birds before they become endangered—before they require additional funding, protections, and decades of work to bring back. Proactive conservation is the fastest, most effective strategy, and our best chance for success is now.

Bird Conservation Benefits Everybody

The loss of 3 billion birds is an urgent biodiversity crisis that requires action. And the returns on helping birds will extend well beyond birds. Bird conservation offers bold opportunities for locally led, voluntary efforts that will protect, connect, and restore our lands and waters.

Actions and initiatives to bring back birds can also play a role in achieving national goals for broader biodiversity protection, climate resilience, and environmental justice—all while staying true to the principles of benefitting all people, strengthening economies, using science as a guide, honoring Tribal sovereignty, and empowering private landowners as conservation drivers. The bottom line is that bird conservation benefits everybody: wildlife, people, entire ecosystems, and Planet Earth.

We Can Bend the Curve to Bring Birds Back

Action Needed—70 Bird Species Are at a Tipping Point

Bird Conservation Benefits Everybody

WHAT IS NABCI?

Past State of the Birds Reports