Birds are beautiful.  What is more, they are a form of wild life that is often easy to see.  They do bring benefits to the environment, and also to our Planet’s point of view.

 

We will examine those benefits, and find that they are significant, but often play a secondary role to other forms of activity. 

 

They ingest seeds and during excretion distribute them to other areas.  Sometimes they disperse seeds by the simple method of travelling with tiny seeds trapped in their feathers.  Like most organisms on our planet, they carry out this function with no sense of duty or morality.  Just by their existence and way of life, they bring benefits to other life. 

 

Some birds, such as hummingbirds and sunbirds, have specialised beaks and tongues that allow them to access the nectar of flowers, so play a similar role to insects in fertilisation. 

 

Birds come in a great variety of habits and sizes.  Vultures specialise in scavenging for dead animal carcasses.  But more common than vultures is the crow, recycling dead animal matter.  Without the aid of these dignified and beautiful creatures, disease would potentially be more common in humans and animals.

 

Bird droppings, known as guano, are rich in nutrients such as phosphorus, which are essential for photosynthesis to take place.

 

According to the. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, almost all bird species are declining.  According to a 2021 study, since 1980, one out of every six birds has been lost.   This adds up to the loss of 600 million breeding birds over 40 years.  This applies to woodland birds and birds that may be familiar on garden bird tables.  Loss of habitat is widely blamed for this, often caused by the increasing human population, as well as the increasing use of insecticide on arable land. Birds like wild areas, and neat gardens favoured by many gardeners, is a discouragement for birds. 

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