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MISSING? WHO'S MISSING?

Some songbirds - those little singers that flit around the woods in spring and summer - are in trouble. Right now, colorful warblers, swallows, orioles, and thrushes are winging their way to North America. They're flying up from southern lands, just as songbirds have done for millions of years (see map). But there aren't as many of them as there were when your parents were young. What's going on?

A REALLY TOUGH TRIP

Birds that travel long distances meet many dangers along the way. Some of the dangers are natural, and others are caused by people: * Hawks and owls sometimes snatch songbirds in the sky or at their resting places. * Cold air, strong winds, and big storms can easily wipe out a million birds as they migrate. * Bad weather is especially dangerous to birds crossing the ocean, because there's no place to rest. When the tired birds finally reach land, they have to rest and eat right away. But every year more and more ocean-front hotels are built in the birds' favorite resting spots. So the birds have to keep going. Often they are too tired and hungry to go any farther. * Birds that fly over land also need places where they can rest and find food. If their resting spots have become cities, they're in trouble. * Some birds are hit by cars and airplanes. And during the day, many birds see trees reflected in windows. If they fly toward the reflections, they can hit the windows and die. * Night migrators often fly toward the lights of tall towers, and some crash into the towers and die.

TOUGH TIMES IN NORTH AMERICA

Probably the biggest problem for songbirds is that their habitats (the wild places they need) are disappearing. Birds that live near water are in trouble because so many of their wetlands are now cities and farms. And people have destroyed songbird habitats by spraying them with poisons to kill insect pests. Then birds that eat insects are out of luck.

# posted by Medical Information : 5:37 AM