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Urgent call for conservation efforts as migratory bird species officially declared extinct

Curlews are ground-nesting birds that rely on healthy peat bogs and other aquatic ecosystems — Curlews are ground-nesting birds that rely on healthy peat bogs and other aquatic ecosystems (Natural England/PA)

The slender-billed curlew has been officially declared extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
This marks the first recorded global bird extinction from mainland Europe, North Africa, and West Asia.
The species, once widespread and migratory, had its decline first documented in 1912, with no sightings since the mid-1990s.
While the exact causes are largely unknown, hunting, wetland drainage, and overgrazing are believed to have contributed to its demise.
The extinction highlights the global biodiversity crisis and underscores the urgent need for conservation efforts for other declining wading birds, such as the Eurasian curlew.

The once-widespread species that has been declared globally extinct — In full