E-Paper
IUCN upgrades threat to 4 Indian bird species
The IUCN's latest update shows 12 Indian bird species reassessed: 8 downlisted, 4 uplisted, highlighting conservation challenges and ecosystem threats.
New Delhi: The conservation status of 12 Indian bird species has been modified as per the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) latest red list update.
These species were among 1,360 bird species worldwide that were reassessed in the latest review. Of the 12 Indian species which have been reassessed, eight have been ‘downlisted’, signaling positive trends in their conservation status.
Conversely, four species have been ‘uplisted,’ indicating increased concerns regarding their population trends, according to an analysis by Bengaluru-based State of India’s Birds Partnership.
The Indian Courser, a bird that is endemic to the Indian Subcontinent, has been uplisted from Least Concern to Near Threatened. Other species such as the Indian Roller and the Rufous-tailed Lark have also been uplisted to Near Threatened, while the Long-billed Grasshopper-warbler has been categorized as Endangered.
“A national red list is essential for India—it allows us to evaluate threats and trends within our own ecological and socio-economic context. The IUCN list gives us a global view, but national assessments can drive region-specific conservation actions and policy responses like the case of Black-necked Stork, a declining species in India, but globally stable,” Gopinathan Maheswaran, Senior Scientist at Zoological Survey of India said in a statement.
The data for this reassessment for nine of these species is based on the State of India’s Birds report, the organisation said.
State of India’s Birds is a comprehensive assessment of the distribution range, trends in abundance, and conservation status for most of the bird species that regularly occur in India. The report is the result of meticulous analysis of vast quantities of citizen science data. Birdwatchers across the country upload their observations on citizen science platforms like eBird, which is then standardised and analysed to arrive at the population trends, abundance and ranges, based on which conservation status of hundreds of species is evaluated.
Notably, all four species that have been uplisted depend upon open natural ecosystems, which include habitats like grasslands, semi-arid landscapes, desert, croplands, hilly scrublands, and fallow lands. These ecosystems have been under pressure from the expansion of power infrastructure, intensification of agriculture, introduction of invasive species, and interestingly, conversion into woodlands through afforestation.The decline of bird species that rely on these ecosystems highlights the critical need to conserve such open habitats, State of India’s Birds said in their statement.
“The uplisting of the Indian Courser is not just a warning—it’s an alarm bell for India’s vanishing grasslands. These open landscapes, once vibrant with life and tradition, are shrinking rapidly. If we don’t act now to protect and restore natural grasslands, we risk losing the very species that define our open country. Conservation must extend beyond protected areas and embrace coordinated efforts across agencies to safeguard birds surviving in human-dominated landscapes,” said Sujit Narawde, Deputy Director, Bombay Natural History Society in a statement.
HT reported on October 12 that the slender-billed curlew, a migratory shorebird last recorded in Morocco in 1995 has been declared extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The IUCN Red List update includes reassessments of 1,360 bird species by BirdLife International. Nearly 1,256 (11.5%) of the 11,185 species assessed are globally threatened. Overall, 61% of bird species have declining populations – increased from 44% in 2016, the assessment states.
