Bird Singing Competitions – an emerging threat to conservation

A recent paper published on human-bird relationship in the journal ‘Global Ecology and Conservation’ suggests that there has been a rise in the demands of songbirds across the world. The bird singing contests which are held all over the world are judged by the humans for their plumages, songs, and movement while the birds are kept inside decorated cages. The champion bird brings glory and a considerable prize, money in most cases to the owner.

The rise in these trends is proving a threat to the wild bird population, which are traded across the world for their singing ability. This threat is especially in Southeast Asia in Singapore and Thailand. The paper also suggests that presently, bird singing contests take place in at least 22 countries using at least 36 species of birds.