World Migratory Bird Day 2023 ( Water: Sustaining Bird Life )
World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) aims to raise awareness of migratory birds and issues related to their conservation. The campaign highlights the importance of international cooperation and encourages national and local actions to protect migratory birds and their habitats.
The roots of World Migratory Bird Day can be traced back to 1993, when International Migratory Bird Day was created in the Americas to focus public attention on the need for international cooperation to conserve birds and habitats. In 2006, World Migratory Bird Day was initiated by CMS and AEWA, originally as a measure to counteract the negative publicity migratory birds were receiving across the world due to Avian Influenza. A decade later, in 2017, the two campaigns joined forces, and World Migratory Bird Day has now become a truly global effort. Past World Migratory Bird Day themes have focused on issues such as climate change, barriers to migration, illegal killing of birds, plastic and light pollution.
The 2023 poster supports the theme of this year's World Migratory Bird Day, "Water: Sustaining Bird Life", a call to attention to the importance of water and related habitats for migratory birds.
Unfortunately, increasing human demand for water, as well as human-driven pollution and climate change, threaten many of the water areas on which migratory birds depend. World Migratory Bird Day raises awareness of these issues and serves as a call to action for the protection of birds and their habitats.
Maccoa Duck and Dalmatian Pelican remind us that many species need wetlands and open water for migration, wintering, and breeding. Some birds require specific types of water habitats, such as the tidal flats that Spoon-billed Sandpipers use during migration and winter, the mangrove forests and other coastal areas favored by Black-capped Kingfisher, and the seasonally flooded fields in which the Sarus Crane nests.
Water is essential for the survival of insects pursued by the Barn Swallow, the growth of nectar-producing plants frequented by the Rufous Hummingbird, and the health of grasslands inhabited by the Dickcissel and riverine forests used by the European Turtle Dove. The Atlantic Puffin and Wandering Albatross represent the oceans that make up 97 percent of all water on earth and are becoming increasingly polluted with chemicals and plastic waste. And finally, the Osprey serves as a conservation success story, reminding us that bird population declines can be reversed when we work together to conserve and protect our planet.
The two peak days of World Migratory Bird Day 2023 will be 13 May and 14 October, reflecting the cyclical nature of seasonal bird migrations.