The Great Out-tours are extremely passionate about our 🪶feathered friends🦢, and through our national award-winning school programmes, WE REGULARLY feature them in curricular activities 🔭.
What is World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD)❓
This special day is an annual awareness-raising campaign, highlighting the need for the conservation of migratory birds and their habitats.
Each year WMBD select a 'central concern' theme for their campaign.
📋 "Protect insects, protect birds."
📌🐜🐝🦋🐞🐛 In 2024 and for the first time ever, World Migratory Bird Day focuses on the importance of INSECTS for migratory birds, and highlight concerns related to decreasing populations of insects. 😲
🐜 Insects are essential sources of energy for many migratory bird species, not only during the breeding seasons but also during their extensive journeys & greatly affect the timing, duration, & overall success of bird migrations.
🐝 Along their migration routes, birds actively seek out insects in fields, forests, wetlands, & various habitats during stopovers. The timing of bird migration often coincides with peak insect abundance at stopover locations, supplying nourishment for birds to replenish their energy reserves before continuing their journeys.
📋 Case study: The European bee-eater
European bee-eater catching a bee © Canva.com
This vibrant, colourful bird relies heavily on insects during its migration across vast distances. As they travel from their wintering grounds in Africa to their breeding sites across Europe and Asia, these birds embark on a challenging journey that requires ample energy.
🐝 Insects, particularly bees, wasps, and dragonflies, provide the high-energy food these birds need to sustain themselves.
European bee-eaters skilfully catch their prey in mid-air during flight, which not only fuels their long migratory trips but also reduces the population of stinging insects, showcasing a fascinating interaction between bird species and their prey in the natural world.
⚠️😳 The RAW TRUTH:
🦋 The loss and disturbance of insect populations at breeding sites and along avian migration routes THREATEN BIRD SURVIVAL & WELL-BEING.
🐞 Natural spaces like forests & grasslands that have been transformed / endangered by intensive agriculture, contribute to insect declines.
🐜 Urban development & its effects (such as light pollution), can result in heavy insect losses.
⚠️ Pesticides & herbicides designed to protect crops harm insects that birds rely on for food.
🐛 A scarcity of energy / protein-rich insects can hinder bird migration / breeding. This leads to weakened immune systems, reduced reproductive success, & increased mortality rates for both adult birds & their offspring.
