Study finds that bird activities might have changed due to the lockdowns.

 

Two research teams from the University of Manitoba and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, conducted a study on the activities of North American birds associating it with the Covid-19 pandemic.

The research which examined about 4.3 million birds between the months of March and May, starting in 2017 till 2021, found out that the reduced mobility of the country during the Covid-19 lockdowns might have affected the bird behaviour in North American states.

The result showed that 80 percent of the 82 species observed, were found closer to areas inhabited by humans, in larger numbers when compared to pre-pandemic levels. Many of the species became abundant in the human-inhabited regions during the pandemic. A member of the research team from University of Manitoba, Nicola Koper said that he was blown away by the data which showed how the decrease in human traffic have affected different species of birds of the country.

As the lockdowns got stricter and stronger, the sightings of bald eagle increased in the cities. Similarly, red-throated humming birds were three times more likely to be seen within a mile of an airport. Researchers also put forward the possibility for change in the results as their results primarily relied on volunteer sightings.

Alison Johnston, a co-author from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology said that she wondered if the species being reported in large numbers was the result of more people watching birds during the pandemic when they could finally notice the birds with reduced traffic noises, than compared to normal times.