Published: Less than 2 hours ago
Migratory birds in Africa are hit hard by climate change. Many species are now threatened or forced to change their migratory patterns completely by settling in colder northern areas.
Warmer and drier weather conditions due to human-caused climate change are shrinking wetlands in the central and eastern parts of Africa, causing migratory birds to lose their water sources and nesting sites. An example of that is Lake Chad, where birds stop before crossing the Sahara desert, which has shrunk over the years.
About 10 percent of Africa’s more than 2,000 bird species, including dozens of migratory birds, are threatened with extinction. Over a third of them are particularly vulnerable to climate change and extreme weather, according to an analysis by the bird protection organization Birdlife International.
“Migratory birds are more affected than other groups of birds because they have to keep moving, making it more likely that a place they rely on during their journey has been degraded in some way,” said Ken Mwathe, policy coordinator at Birdlife International.
That the move becomes tougher for the dehydrated birds also affects their ability to breed, according to Paul Matiku, CEO of the environmental organization Nature Kenya. This applies, for example, to flamingos, which usually nest at Lake Natron in Tanzania and need access to water to build nests of mud and protect the eggs from the hot ground.