Worldwide threat to birds driven by deforestation

MORE than three in five bird species around the world are in decline because of deforestation led by agriculture and logging, experts have warned.

- By Steph Spyro

Extinct...the slender-billed curlew

An estimated 61% have declining populations - up from 44% in 2016.

And 11% of the 11,185 bird species assessed for a worldwide conservation inventory are globally threatened.

Birds play a vital role as pollinators, seed dispersers, pest controllers and scavengers.

The most prevalent cause for declines in bird population is their habitats being lost or degraded.