474/ BirdsConTour Scientist - birding with a reason

CONSERVATION AND TOURISM

Spur-winged Goose in its natural wetland habitat.

Water Monitor in its natural wetland habitat

Conservation of biodiversity, the total variety of life on earth, is one of the major concerns of BirdsConTour, particularly as warnings of imminent mass extinctions of species become recognized as based on solid information.

Currently extinction rates of birds and mammals are estimated to be +-500 times what they would be under natural conditions and BirdsConTour base future extinction rates on projected rates of habitat loss.

Blue Cranes in their natural grassland habitat

In a wider-reaching sense also human depend on healthy grassland habitat

As an example, a quarter of earth was once covered by grasslands, but much of these are now faced with continuing habitat loss, fragmentation and desertification. Only 5 percent of the original prairie (grassland) in the United States remains. Grassland, also containing river valleys and wetlands, is considered as the world's most endangered ecosystem, not only resulting in a widespread loss of wildlife habitat but having a wider-reaching impact on the ecosystem as a whole, also impacting the survival of human kind that relies on healthy grasslands as part of the whole ecosystem.

BirdsConTour's Sustainable Grassland Management project showcases how people and nature can coexist. Many of the world's grasslands have a long history of sustainable livestock grazing. This grazing has supported generations of grassland ranchers and the Sustainable Grassland Management project helps to restore and maintain grassland health and it benefits many grassland bird life and a correspondingly large number of other wildlife.

With this project BirdsConTour shows its passion and ability to conserve and restore the world's grassland heritage.

As part of our efforts in conserving biodiversity is the protection and sustainable management of certain places, as a result helping to ensure the survival of not only a correspondingly large number of wildlife (animal and plant species) but also humankind.

In order to determine priorities for biodiversity conservation, BirdsConTour initiated the BirdsConTour Scientist - birding with a reason project. Because birds are the only major group among plants and animals to have dispersed to and diversified in all the regions of the world and virtually all habitat types and altitudinal zones, they are the most effective indicators of wider biodiversity. Birds are BirdsConTour's ambassadors of change! With the BirdsConTour Scientist project BirdsConTour together with our appreciated bird watching guests, not only enjoy watching birds for their intrinsic value during our our worldwide offered bird watching tours but - as BirdsConTour scientists - also to contribute to gathering data about species identified and similar that will be analysed and then contribute to the preservation of nature in a sustainable way.

In order to become a certified BirdsConTour Scientist, you are welcome to join one of our interesting tours.