The 6th edition of the State of the World's Birds report, released by BirdLife International on 11 September at the Global Flyways Summit in Nairobi, reveals that one in nine migratory bird species is threatened with extinction. Seven species have been confirmed or suspected to have gone extinct over the last 150 years, including the spoon-billed sandpiper, whose extinction was announced in 2025 as the first global extinction of a bird in Eurasia and Africa in recent centuries. Of the world's 1,843 migratory species, 45% are in decline, 30% are stable, 14% are increasing and 11% are unknown.
Declines are particularly steep on some flyways. The Asia-Australasia flyway records 53% of species in decline, while the African-Eurasian flyway, which passes through Portugal, shows 41% declines. Seabirds and shorebirds are the most affected, with 49% and 54% in decline, respectively. Since 1988, 102 migratory species have been classified with a higher threat status on the IUCN Red List.
The causes of decline are well known and include invasive alien species, disease, agricultural expansion and intensification, climate change, illegal hunting and trapping, and pollution. Many species face multiple threats that cause cumulative impacts and high mortality during migrations. However, experts note that conservation solutions are also known and that programmes worldwide prove it is possible to restore habitats and help populations recover. Currently, 120 BirdLife International partner organisations work to conserve migratory birds.
Given this situation, the governments, scientists, environmental organisations and financial institutions gathered at the Nairobi summit signed the Nairobi Declaration on Flyways, committing to protect birds and habitats along the entire migration route. SPEA-BirdLife stressed that Portugal plays a crucial role in migratory routes between Europe and Africa, and that protecting wetlands, coastal areas and agricultural habitats is essential for birds that nest here, spend the winter or use as a stopover.
