Wild Animals

Wild Migratory Bird Stopover Habitat

Migratory birds depend on networks of stopover habitats to refuel during journeys of thousands of miles, and the loss of these sites is a welfare crisis.

Key Facts

Migratory birds can lose 25-50% of their body weight during long over-water flights
Stopover sites with inadequate food force birds to depart below optimal condition
Coastal wetland loss has eliminated critical refueling sites for millions of birds
Birds arriving at depleted stopovers face increased predation risk from weakened condition

Welfare Considerations

Individual birds arriving at degraded or eliminated stopover sites face an existential welfare crisis — too depleted to continue, with nowhere to recover. The welfare consequences of stopover habitat loss are multiplied across billions of individual migrants each year.

What You Can Do

Support wetland conservation in known stopover locations
Advocate for protection of coastal staging areas in planning processes
Participate in migratory bird monitoring programs to document stopover use
Plant native vegetation in gardens to support insect abundance for stopover birds