Birds that call Colorado’s high plains and deserts home are in serious decline, according to a sweeping new conservation report.
Why it matters: Birds are indicators of the overall health of their habitats and signal early warnings of broader trouble. If these habitats can’t support birdlife, they likely can’t sustain other wildlife — or even humans — for long.
By the numbers: In the past 50 years, Colorado species like the mountain plover and Baird’s sparrow have seen population crashes over 67%, per the North American Bird Conservation Initiative’s 2025 State of the Birds report .
- The pinyon jay — a signature species of Colorado’s pinyon-juniper woodlands — has lost 70% of its population. It’s now labeled a “Tipping Point” species, meaning it could vanish without urgent conservation action.
Zoom out: Since 1970, nearly half of aridland birds and 43% of grassland birds across the U.S., including the Western meadowlark in Colorado, have disappeared…