Status, threats and conservation of Earth’s migratory birds

Abstract

Half of all migratory bird species have declining population sizes. Losses span every region on Earth and raise urgent concerns for the long-term persistence of one of the planet’s most visible and ecologically important groups. Without intervention, continued declines and extinctions are inevitable. In this Review, we discuss current trends, threats and conservation responses for migratory birds. The true status of Earth’s migratory birds remains uncertain as monitoring is constrained by technical and financial limitations and geographic biases, particularly in the Global South. Identifying where declines occur and their causes remains challenging because migrants traverse vast ecological and political landscapes, complicating diagnosis and response. Current conservation momentum is focused on area-based and threat-based approaches, yet most migratory birds spend the majority of their life cycles outside protected areas, and threat mitigation remains largely localized, underscoring the need to advance species-level approaches that target limiting factors before populations become threatened. Reversing declines requires a coordinated framework that integrates full annual cycle understanding with human dimensions, expands monitoring, prioritizes landscape-scale habitat protection, delivers targeted threat reduction, and strengthens governance and financing, supported by precautionary action and more effective communication to conserve Earth’s migratory birds.

Key points

• Migratory birds are among the most visible and widespread components of global biodiversity, contributing disproportionately to ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services worldwide.

• More than half (51%) of migratory bird species are declining globally, highlighting an urgent conservation challenge.

• Incomplete monitoring, geographic biases and the complexity of annual movements limit understanding of where declines are occurring and what factors are driving them.

• Conservation efforts focused on habitat protection and localized threats often fail to address the full annual cycle requirements and limiting factors of migratory species.

• Species-centred, full annual cycle conservation approaches are needed to identify and mitigate limiting factors before populations become critically depleted.

• Reversing declines will require integrating this species-focused approach with improved landscape-scale habitat protection and threat reduction, stronger international cooperation and financing, precautionary action despite uncertainty, improved communication of conservation needs, and interdisciplinary research that integrates ecological, social, economic and governance perspectives.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank A. Abbott for her assistance developing the reference library for this manuscript. We also thank S. W. Yanco and several BirdLife International staff members for their comments on an earlier draft. The National Science Foundation and the Knobloch Family Foundation have provided critical support over the years that have helped to support P.P.M. and N.W.C. as well as develop approaches to protecting migratory species. Finally, we thank the thousands of volunteers, community members and professionals who have collected monitoring data on migratory birds across the globe.

Authors and Affiliations

Contributions

P.P.M. and N.W.C. conceived, led and contributed to all aspects of the review. N.W.C. led data summarization and drafted all figures. S.R.L. led writing of the threats section and D.H. led writing of the global conservation efforts section. All authors substantially contributed to the discussion of content, wrote content, and/or reviewed and edited content.

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Nature Reviews Biodiversity thanks Maria Dias and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Related links

Agreement on the Conservation of African–Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds:https://www.unep-aewa.org/

Americas Flyway Framework and Action Plan:https://saiga.cms.int/sites/default/files/document/cms_aftf2_doc.8.1_Draft%20Update%20of%20the%20AFF%20and%20AF%20Action%20Plan%20aligned%20with%20the%20SPMS%20-%20Annex%202.pdf

Americas Flyways Initiative:https://www.caf.com/en/currently/news/the-americas-flyways-initiative-to-begin-implementation-in-january-2025/

Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions:https://www.un.org/bbnjagreement/en

Central Asian Flyway Action Plan to Conserve Migratory Waterbirds and Their Habitats:https://www.cms.int/sites/default/files/document/Report_CAF_Meeting_10_to_12_June_2005_with_annexes_0.pdf

Chile Estrategia Nacional para la Conservación de las Aves:https://estrategia-aves.mma.gob.cl/marco-estrategico/

CMS Action Plan for African–Eurasian Migratory Landbirds:https://www.unep-aewa.org/workinggroup/oiseaux-migrateurs-terrestres-en-afrique-et-en-eurasie

CMS National Legislation Programme Findings Report:https://www.cms.int/sites/default/files/uploads/CMS%20National%20Legislation%20Programme%20-%20Findings%20Report.pdf

Colombia Estrategia Nacional para la Conservación de las Aves:https://asociacioncolombianadeornitologia.org/enca-fase-ii/

Convention for the Protection of Migratory Birds:https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/treaty-canada-migratory-birds-1916.pdf

East Asia–Australasian Flyway Partnership:https://eaaflyway.org/

East Asia–Australasian Flyway Strategic Plan:https://eaaflyway.org/implementation-strategy/

EU Birds Directive:https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/nature-and-biodiversity/birds-directive_en

Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Birds of Prey in Africa and Eurasia:https://raptors.cms.int/page/agreement-text

Migratory Bird Treaty Act:https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918

North American Waterfowl Management Plan:https://nawmp.org/

Partners in Flight:https://partnersinflight.org/

Protected Planet Report:https://www.protectedplanet.net/en

Road to Recovery:https://r2rbirds.org/

Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network:https://whsrn.org/

Supplementary information

Glossary

A year in the life of a ‘typical’ migratory bird is conceptually split into different periods including breeding, post-fledging, moult (can span multiple periods in some species), post-breeding migration, non-breeding and pre-breeding migration.

A type of seasonal interaction that affects individuals but is non-fatal in the season of the effect, such as when poor physical condition or delayed phenology carries over from one season to subsequent seasons to influence vital rates such as reproductive success or survival.

When individuals or populations migrate only under certain ecological conditions, such as food scarcity, harsh weather or competition, resulting in temporal and spatial variation in migratory behaviour within a species and between years.

A form of movement characterized by episodic, large-scale movements that occur in response to reart of a regular annual migratory cycle

The spatial and temporal redistribution of individuals within a species as they transition between periods of the annual cycle, including from breeding to migration and to the non-breeding period and the return migration. Populations of species that exhibit weak migratory connectivity mix extensively on the non-breeding grounds from various breeding sites, whereas species with strong migratory connectivity have breeding populations that use distinct non-breeding areas.

Countries that exercise jurisdiction over any part of the natural range of a migratory species, whether that species occurs there regularly, seasonally, or occasionally.

Events occurring during one period that continue to influence individuals and populations during subsequent periods, profoundly influencing both ecological and evolutionary processes. They can occur at individual (carry-over effects) and population (density-dependent mechanisms) levels.

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Marra, P.P., Cooper, N.W., Loss, S.R. et al. Status, threats and conservation of Earth’s migratory birds.
Nat. Rev. Biodivers. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-026-00177-7

• Version of record:23 July 2026

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  :https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-026-00177-7