Researchers have revealed that threatened birds have disappeared from almost 70 per cent of Australia since European colonisation.
Researchers have revealed that threatened birds have disappeared from almost 70 per cent of Australia since European colonisation.
The study – led by The University of Queensland, Charles Darwin University, WWF Australia and Australian Wildlife Conservancy – mapped the pre-European (1750) habitats of Australia’s most threatened birds, comparing those with current habitats.
Dr Michelle Ward, from UQ’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and WWF Australia, said Australians should be extremely alarmed by the findings.
“A whopping 69 per cent of the country is missing some of its most enigmatic bird species,” Dr Ward said.
“And 10 birds have become locally extinct from 99 per cent of their historical habitat, with their remaining habitats having become much more fragmented.
“Australia is celebrated globally as having some of the most intact ecosystems on the planet, but there’s been a mass local extinction of wild animals across much of the continent.
“Since European colonisation, human activities associated with forestry, agricultural development, urbanisation and mining have been driving – and continue to drive – extinctions and diminish populations.
Read more at: University of Queensland
The golden-shouldered parrot is currently listed as Endangered and has been driven to extinction from more than 96% of its historical habitat. (Photo Credit: Jan Wegener)
