Meet the Eurasian collared-dove.

I hope you like the looks of this bird, because soon it may be the only one you see at your feeders in the United States. It’s called the “Eurasian collared-dove” and experts say it is “conquering America.” A dove-like bird that first entered the United States via Florida in the 1980’s, it is now the most prevalent bird in Florida and in more than thirty other states, according to National Audubon Society bird expert, Greg Butcher. A study released by the National Audubon Society on Thursday, reports that the populations of 20 common American birds from the fence-sitting meadowlark to the whippoorwill are half what they were 40 years ago.

The study’s author, Greg Butcher of the National Audubon Society, says Suburban sprawl, climate change and other invasive species are largely to blame. If you’d like to learn more about America’s quickly disappearing native bird population, visit Project Feeder Watch at Cornell University. It’s a great site where you can enjoy learning about Native birds while watching numerous videos of increasingly rare birds at feeders around the country.

Project Feeder Watch at Cornell University

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