Curb Animal Agriculture to Protect Wild Birds

Coates is a small pit stop on the side of a highway about 30 miles south of Minneapolis. A sign alongside the road marks the small farming community: “Coates, Population: 141.”

My mom is a lifelong bird lover, and she had heard rumblings of an increased population of Snowy Owls in and around Coates. Snowy Owls, perhaps best popularized by Harry Potter’s owl Hedwig, are large white owls with black or brown markings who live in the Arctic Tundra. During this particular year, colder weather patterns in Canada drove a higher population of Snowy Owls to Southern Minnesota.

The wonder of birds was lost on most members of my family at that time, but we had a long-standing tradition of celebrating birthdays with great gusto. So despite our hesitation, we made the trip to Coates during a brutal Minnesota winter. Our chances of spotting a Snowy Owl seemed bleak as we drove aimlessly through the barren county roads.

Half an hour into our search, we spotted a cluster of cars pulled over on the side of the highway. As a wildlife guide once told me, there are two ways to spot wildlife: look for wildlife or look for tail lights. We had found the Snowy Owl, who sat plainly yet majestically atop the snow in a barren field.

What I didn’t know at the time of this Snowy Owl adventure was that wild birds are crucial to the wellbeing of the ecosystems all living beings rely on—including me. Birds require plant-rich habitat to survive, but a few major threats—including expanding animal agriculture—have precipitated a plunge in wild bird populations. Later, I would discover that the way we use animals for food is threatening the wild animals we cherish.

My spark bird

I begrudgingly joined the search for the Snowy Owl out of birthday obligation, but years later I would catch the birding bug myself. On a walk near my home at the dawn of the COVID-19 pandemic, I spotted a creature that looked more like a miniature dinosaur than a bird. The bird boasted a dramatic red crest above their striped face and yellow eyes. My walking companion informed me that these birds—Pileated Woodpeckers—are not uncommon in the area. I was shocked to learn that I had been sharing my neighborhood with birds like this one for most of my life, and I had never noticed them. I became aware of my non-human neighbors for the first time.

The Pileated Woodpecker was my “spark bird”—the bird that sparked my interest in all birds. Like many other people, I fell in love with birds amidst the pandemic. During long periods of isolation, I found joy in encountering new feathered friends and becoming more aware of who I share my community with.

The crucial role of wild birds

Soon I learned that birds aren't simply a source of joy for many humans like me, but they are critical to our survival as a species. Our delicate ecosystem relies upon birds to control pests, pollinate plants, distribute seeds, and recycle nutrients. Pileated Woodpeckers, for instance, create cavities in trees that other species of birds and small animals later use for protection and procreation. Each species plays an important role in the web of life.

Scientists have identified birds as one of the most useful indicators of environmental health. In the words of ecologist Dr. Thomas Lovejoy, "If you take care of birds, you take care of most of the environmental problems in the world."

The biggest threats to birds

"Taking care of birds" is no easy task in the modern world. There are nearly 3 billion fewer birds in our skies now than there were in 1970. Scientists primarily attribute this staggering 30% population decline to habitat loss and climate change. Tactics that might seem like common sense solutions—like putting out bird feeders—may be beneficial to certain species while harming others.

The unexpected culprit decimating bird populations is agriculture—primarily animal agriculture. Raising billions of animals for food each year precipitates widespread deforestation and habitat loss, which disrupt ecosystems and limit the resources available to wild birds. To produce meat, farmers must clear vast swaths of land for growing feed crops and raising livestock. The space and inputs required to raise and keep animals require extensive destruction of diverse landscapes, eliminating the habitat and food sources birds and other wild animals rely on. Estimates suggest that 70% of the destruction of the Amazon rainforest—a critical bird habitat sometimes referred to as the lungs of the planet—can be attributed to cattle ranching.

Climate change is also a major threat to birds and all wildlife. Warming temperatures disrupt bird habitat, alter migration patterns, and affect the availability of food sources. Interestingly, the use of animals for food is one of the leading contributors to climate change. Estimates suggest that the meat industry produces at least 15% of all greenhouse gasses. We use roughly 70 billion land animals for food each year, and the digestion process of these animals—specifically cows and sheep—release harmful emissions. Worse yet, the disappearing plant-rich bird habitat, destroyed for grazing and growing animal feed, had been essential for capturing and storing carbon to curb global warming.

According to the United Nations Environment Program, "The greenhouse gas footprint of animal agriculture rivals that of every car, truck, bus, ship, airplane and rocket ship combined... There is no pathway to achieve the Paris climate objectives without a massive decrease in the scale of animal agriculture."

Raising cows, birds, and other animals for food on an industrial scale poses major environmental concerns. Protecting wild birds—and all life on Earth—requires limiting the massive scale of global animal agriculture.

Parallel fates

The well-being of wild birds, domesticated birds, and even humans is interdependent. Beyond our shared reliance on the health of our planet, there are numerous other ways in which our survival is linked. The threat of zoonotic disease, exacerbated by factory farming, is one important example.

Many infectious diseases share a root cause: intensive animal agriculture. The overcrowded, unsanitary conditions of animal farms create ideal environments for the transmission and mutation of viruses. Right now, intensive poultry farming is accelerating the spread of a new strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) among wild and domestic birds around the globe.

In the 1990s, scientists traced the first strain of the bird flu to a chicken farm. Today, both wild and domesticated birds carry a newer strain of the virus. Infected wild birds spread the virus to new domestic flocks as they migrate, which in turn infects more wild birds. Once the virus is contracted within a factory farm, the cramped conditions lead to a rapid and often deadly spread of disease among thousands of birds. In an effort to contain the virus, tens of millions of birds—most of whom were not infected with the virus—have been exterminated.

Importantly, a handful of humans—and many other mammal species—have contracted the bird flu due to contact with wild or domesticated birds. Zoonotic diseases, accelerated by animal agriculture, pose a serious threat to our survival. According to public health expert Dr. Michael Greger in his book Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own Hatching, "If you actually want to create global pandemics, then build factory farms."

The interconnectedness of animal agriculture, wild bird populations, and human health doesn't stop there. Vulture populations offer another useful example. Vultures play a crucial role in the ecosystem by efficiently disposing of animal carcasses, and thus reducing the spread of diseases. But the widespread use of anti-inflammatory drugs, particularly nimesulide and diclofenac, in animal farming has had devastating consequences for several species of vulture in various countries.

Vultures who feed on the carcasses of animals treated with nimesulide or diclofenac die from kidney failure—often within a matter of days. This inadvertent poisoning, compounded by habitat loss due to the expansion of animal agriculture, has precipitated a plunge in the population of several vulture species—some declining by more than 90%. The loss of these essential scavengers not only disrupts the balance of our ecosystem but also increases the risk of disease transmission in both animals and humans, highlighting the intricate and often unintended connections between animal agriculture and the environment.

"The overarching point is that vultures are super important. If they decline, we expect there to be pretty profound ecological consequences and there may be increases in human disease burden. And so we should appreciate vultures and invest in their conservation," conservation scientist Dr. Evan Buechly said.

In the complex web of our shared ecosystem, humans and birds alike depend on the survival of other species. Recognizing our interconnectedness is essential to building a more ethical food system that protects the delicate balance of life on our planet.

A bird named Rory

On a visit to a farm animal sanctuary in New Richmond, Wisconsin several years ago, I met a bird named Rory who I will never forget. Rory looked like a big fluffy ball, with a wonky collection of black feathers, all sticking out in different directions.

Some of the birds at the sanctuary were friendly, and might even purr as you hold them⁠—not Rory. He was assertive and salty. At feeding time, he would strategically guard the food—fending off the advances of other males—and then share the bounty with his female friends. Rory taught me that chickens are thinking, feeling beings with unique personalities.

Most birds on the planet today are not wild but, like Rory, domesticated for their meat or eggs. Chickens like Rory face a grim reality on a global scale. Increased demand for animal products worldwide has resulted in more intensive farming of chickens and other animals. Every year inside factory farms, billions of birds suffer cramped, filthy conditions. While egg-laying hens typically spend their short lives in a cage roughly the size of a standard sheet of paper, chickens raised for meat spend their short lives in a restricted amount of space in a crowded barn.

Recently, I was catching up on emails, and found myself captivated by an email from a bird conservation organization about the muscles and bones that make flight possible for our feathered friends. As I scanned through the article, I read a heading: "Learn while eating." The author walked the reader through how to carve open a chicken to see the anatomical features discussed in the article. I found myself surprised by the line we draw between which birds we believe merit celebration and protection and which do not. While we treasure wild birds and their freedom, many of us remain indifferent to the suffering and confinement of similar birds exploited for food production.

What many of us bird enthusiasts fail to understand is that the fate of wild and farmed birds is interconnected. Intensively farming birds and other animals by the billions is not only ethically concerning, but also poses serious environmental threats to the wildlife we love. Animal protection—specifically curbing large-scale industrialized animal farming—may be one of the most promising tactics for preserving biodiversity and saving the planet.

An opportunity for climate progress

Birds are a ubiquitous symbol of hope. The acclaimed birder Christian Cooper said: "Birds belong to everybody. Nobody owns the birds. They're for all of us to enjoy, all of us to get out there and appreciate." Birds can spark wonder and curiosity as they fulfill their crucial roles in our ecosystem.

The Snowy Owl and the Pileated Woodpecker, who first felt so strange and foreign to me just a few years ago, have come to feel like old friends. As their populations plummet, the threat of empty skies feels personal. More importantly, their declining numbers may also manifest as more dire environmental consequences that affect all living beings.

Industrial animal agriculture harms wild and domesticated birds alike. As domesticated birds and other animals used for food suffer grim conditions in factory farms, the resources and land required to produce their meat precipitate the deforestation and pollution that are stifling wild animal populations. Curbing animal agriculture represents a crucial step towards safeguarding wild bird populations and preserving the delicate balance of our ecosystems for generations to come.