Protect Marine Life - Birds

Seabirds and shorebirds are among the most threatened marine groups, with global populations dropping nearly 70% in the past 50 years.

Key pressures include overfishing of prey, bycatch, invasive predators, and plastic pollution. Conservation efforts, such as eradicating invasive species and reducing bycatch, have enabled localized recoveries, but overall declines continue.

Seabirds remain critical indicators of ocean health and underscore the urgency of protecting both nesting and feeding grounds.

The IUCN Red List tracks the conservation status of assessed species, while the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) provides open data on the distribution of marine species. Together, these resources help us monitor trends, identify hotspots of biodiversity, and guide action to protect and restore ocean life.

Key Stats

952

Birds tracked on the IUCN Red List
44%

Birds showing decreasing population trends
16%

Birds with insufficient data for assessment

Species at Risk of Extinction

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Globally, 11% of IUCN-assessed marine bird species are at high risk of extinction.

Birds Data Score

Data Quality (# of species)
- 0 - Insufficient
- 0 - Expired
- 1162 - Stale
- 1145 - Recent
- 20 - Sufficient
Geographic Range

99.30 of global data available
Global Goal(s)

2030 Goal – High Quality
2050 Goal – High Quality

Data Availability

There is still so much we do not know about our oceans.

Join us in filling critical gaps in ocean data.

Birds are key players in marine ecosystems.

Seabirds and shorebirds regulate food webs, cycle nutrients, and support biodiversity, and the health of these birds is deeply tied to the resilience and productivity of the oceans and coasts.

Despite their ecological importance, our ability to track and understand how bird populations change over time is still limited. Data are often incomplete or unevenly distributed, especially in remote ocean regions or along less-monitored coastlines. Integrating tracking, citizen science, aerial surveys, and species modeling will be crucial to fill these gaps.

Bird Populations

Track how bird populations are changing over time to understand the current health of ocean ecosystems and the impact of conservation efforts.

Population Trends

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Globally, 40.8% of marine birds are increasing or stable.

Threats and Risk

Explore the main threats driving birds’ decline and see how species are classified by risk level to help prioritize protection and recovery efforts.

Greatest Threats

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Globally, the largest threats to all marine bird species are biological resource use, residential and commercial development, and pollution.

Risk Level

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Globally, of the 105 bird species at a high risk of extinction, 69 species are only classified as endangered, meaning there’s still a strong chance for recovery with timely action

Species	Threat	Trend
Abbott's Booby	Endangered	Stable
Amsterdam Island Albatross	Endangered	Increasing
Antipodean Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing
Arctic Skua	Endangered	Decreasing
Ashy Storm Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Atlantic Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Australian Painted-snipe	Endangered	Decreasing
Balearic Shearwater	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Bank Cormorant	Endangered	Decreasing
Bannerman's Shearwater	Endangered	Decreasing
Barau's Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Beck's Petrel	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Bernier's Teal	Endangered	Decreasing
Big-crested Penguin	Endangered	Decreasing
Black Rail	Endangered	Decreasing
Black Stilt	Critically Endangered	Increasing
Black-capped Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Black-faced Spoonbill	Endangered	Increasing
Black-footed Penguin	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Black-fronted Tern	Endangered	Decreasing
Bryan's Shearwater	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Cahow	Endangered	Increasing
Cape Cormorant	Endangered	Decreasing
Cape Gannet	Endangered	Decreasing
Caspian Plover	Endangered	Unknown
Chatham Island Pied Oystercatcher	Endangered	Stable
Chatham Island Shag	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Chatham Island Taiko	Critically Endangered	Increasing
Chinese Crested-Tern	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Chinese Merganser	Endangered	Decreasing
Crested Coot	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Crested Shelduck	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Dark-mantled Sooty Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing
Dark-rumped Petrel	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Eastern Curlew	Endangered	Decreasing
Eider	Endangered	Decreasing
Freira	Endangered	Increasing
Galápagos Martin	Endangered	Decreasing
Galápagos Penguin	Endangered	Decreasing
Gray's Brush-turkey	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Gray-headed Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing
Great Knot	Endangered	Decreasing
Great White Heron	Endangered	Decreasing
Grey Sea Eagle	Endangered	Unknown
Guadalupe Murrelet	Endangered	Decreasing
Guadalupe Storm Petrel	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Hawaiian Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Henderson Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Hooded Grebe	Critically Endangered	Stable
Humblot's Heron	Endangered	Decreasing
Hutton's Shearwater	Endangered	Stable
Indian Skimmer	Endangered	Decreasing
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing
Jamaican Petrel	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Japanese White Stork	Endangered	Decreasing
Laysan Teal	Critically Endangered	Increasing
MacGillivray's Petrel	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
MacGillivray's Prion	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Madagascar Dabchick	Endangered	Decreasing
Madagascar Fish Eagle	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Madagascar Marsh-harrier	Endangered	Decreasing
Madagascar Pond-heron	Endangered	Decreasing
Madagascar Sacred Ibis	Endangered	Decreasing
Malagasy Marsh Harrier	Endangered	Decreasing
Marbled Murrelet	Endangered	Decreasing
Marsh Owl	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Milky Stork	Endangered	Decreasing
New Zealand Dotterel	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
New Zealand Storm Petrel	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Newell's Shearwater	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Nihoa Finch	Critically Endangered	Stable
Nordmann's Greenshank	Endangered	Decreasing
Northern Royal Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing
Orange-bellied Parakeet	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Osprey	Endangered	Increasing
Peruvian Tern	Endangered	Decreasing
Pinnamin	Endangered	Decreasing
Pitt Shag	Endangered	Decreasing
Plain-flanked Rail	Endangered	Decreasing
Pohnpei Cicadabird	Endangered	Decreasing
Polynesian Storm Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Puffin	Endangered	Decreasing
Rapa Shearwater	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Raza Island Lark	Critically Endangered	Stable
Réunion Petrel	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Saker	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow	Endangered	Decreasing
Shore Dotterel	Endangered	Increasing
Siberian Sandplover	Endangered	Decreasing
Slender-billed Curlew	Critically Endangered	Unknown
Sooty Falcon	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Spoonbill Sandpiper	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Swan Goose	Endangered	Decreasing
Townsend's Shearwater	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Townsend's Storm-petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Tristan Albatross	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Tuamotu Sandpiper	Endangered	Decreasing
Waved Albatross	Critically Endangered	Decreasing
Westland Black Petrel	Endangered	Unknown
Whenua Hou Diving-petrel	Critically Endangered	Increasing
White-faced Storm Petrel	Endangered	Decreasing
Whooping Crane	Endangered	Increasing
Yellow-eyed Penguin	Endangered	Decreasing
Yellow-nosed Albatross	Endangered	Decreasing

Protecting birds requires coordinated efforts across policy, conservation, and community action. By reducing pressures and supporting ecosystem recovery, we can help species rebound and strengthen ocean resilience.

Taking Action

Protect Existing Populations

Designating and enforcing marine protected areas in key seabird foraging areas can help protect both fish stocks and seabirds.
Practice Sustainable Fishing

Implementing sustainable fishing practices is critical to ensure that seabirds have sufficient food supplies. Seabird-friendly fishing techniques can significantly reduce bycatch. Using weighted lines and setting longlines at night can help prevent seabirds from getting caught in fishing gear.
Protect and Restore Habitats

Protecting key nesting areas from human disturbance and habitat destruction is essential for seabird conservation. Habitat restoration projects, including replanting coastal vegetation and removing invasive species, can improve nesting sites and create the necessary conditions for seabirds to reproduce safely.

Reduce Pollution

Reducing plastic waste at its source, improving waste management systems, and banning single-use plastics can help prevent seabirds from ingesting or becoming entangled in plastic debris. Stricter regulations on industrial discharges, agricultural runoff, offshore drilling, and the use of harmful chemicals can reduce pollution that negatively affects seabird health.
Eradicate Invasive Species

Removing invasive species, such as rats, cats, and dogs, allows seabird colonies to recover and increases breeding success.
Protect Nesting Sites

Effective land-use and marine spatial planning, including coastal zoning, is essential to protect nesting sites and establish buffer zones around them. These measures are critical for the restoration of seabird populations, as they minimize habitat disruption and human interference in critical breeding areas.

Engage Local Communities

Engaging local communities and stakeholders in the protection and rebuilding of seabird populations is important to ensure long-term success of restoration. Supporting organizations that rescue and rehabilitate injured or oil-contaminated seabirds is crucial for population recovery.
Strengthen Legal Protections and Policies

Strengthening international, national, and local laws to safeguard seabirds and their habitats is crucial. Expanding legal frameworks like the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species can offer stronger protections. Additionally, stricter enforcement against illegal hunting, egg harvesting, and habitat destruction is necessary to combat threats effectively.
Monitor and Research Populations

Ongoing scientific research and citizen science initiatives are essential for tracking seabird populations, breeding success, and migration patterns. Continuous monitoring helps identify long-term trends and environmental impacts, guiding conservation efforts and policy decisions.

Case Studies 1

Gulf of Maine
Atlantic Puffin Recovery – Project Puffin

Atlantic puffins were extirpated from many historic nesting islands in the Gulf of Maine by the late 19th century due to overhunting and egg harvesting. Restoration efforts initiated in the 1970s focused on re-establishing breeding colonies through chick translocation, artificial burrows, social attraction techniques, and strict site protection. Puffins first resumed breeding on Eastern Egg Rock in 1977.

Long-term monitoring documented steady population growth. By 2019, Eastern Egg Rock supported 188 breeding pairs, while 573 breeding pairs were recorded on Seal Island, representing one of the most successful seabird restoration outcomes in the North Atlantic. This recovery demonstrates that seabird colonies can be rebuilt after decades of absence when pressures are removed, and adaptive, science-based management is sustained. Puffins also serve as indicators of marine ecosystem health, linking seabird recovery to broader ocean productivity and food-web stability. The project highlights how island restoration and continuous monitoring are essential tools for achieving SDG 15.5 and supporting long-term species persistence.

Key Actors: National Audubon Society (Project Puffin), Field biologists and volunteers, Local partner organizations on Maine islands
seabirdinstitute.audubon.org seabirdinstitute.audubon.org

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View relevant data layers on the globe using the available map toggle in the top right of each card in the left panel.

Note: Loading high-resolution datasets may take up to a minute.

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Protect Marine Life - Birds - Ocean Central

Seabirds and shorebirds are among the most threatened marine groups, with global populations dropping nearly 70% in the past 50 years.

Key Stats

Birds are key players in marine ecosystems.

Protecting birds requires coordinated efforts across policy, conservation, and community action. By reducing pressures and supporting ecosystem recovery, we can help species rebound and strengthen ocean resilience.

Taking Action

Case Studies 1