Dozens of U.S. bird species are struggling by with “perilously low populations” and one-third of all avian species are said to be of “high or moderate conservation concern,” according to a study made public as the Trump administration relaxes some key habitat and bird protection laws.
Billed as a follow-up to an alarming 2019 assessment, the 2025 U.S. “State of the Birds Report” prepared by a consortium of scientific and conservation groups found “continued widespread declines in American bird populations” across all mainland and marine habitats. The most serious declines were among 112 species that have lost more than 50 percent of their populations in the last 50 years.
The worst off are 42 species including the Allen’s hummingbird and the tricolored blackbird that the report declares to be “at risk without immediate intervention.” The report calls these the “red-alert” species.
“When we see declines like those outlined in the report, we need to remember that if conditions are not healthy for birds, they’re unlikely to be healthy for us,” said Amanda Rodewald, faculty director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Center for Avian Population Studies.
