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For generations of Missouri farmers, an enjoyable sign that spring was transitioning into summer was the crisp, clear call of a meadowlark perched on a nearby fencepost. However, that call is becoming alarmingly less common throughout the region. Many people are familiar with the decrease of the greater prairie-chicken throughout much of the central U.S. and most have also heard about the steadily worsening quail situation for the same area. However, unless you’re a birding enthusiast, you’re likely unaware of the downward spiral of eastern meadowlark numbers.

The Storm's stork (Ciconia stormi) is a medium-sized stork species that occurs primarily in lowland tropical forests of Indonesia, Malaysia and southern Thailand. A recent survey conducted along the coastal areas of Kubu, West Kalimantan, shows an alarming rate of population decline among this local bird, raising concerns about the condition of the local mangrove forest ecosystem. The bird, found throughout Borneo, was classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 1994.

The loggerhead shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) is one of a disappearing breed in Ontario; there is a small number in a little protected pocket near Napanee, and otherwise there only appears to be one shrike in Eastern Ontario. It eats mostly insects at this time of year, but also small birds and mice, and often impales prey on a hawthorn tree’s thorn or barbed wire to hold it steady. It is nicknamed the butcherbird after its carnivorous tendencies.

Recent monitoring studies in several countries have revealed a world-wide contamination of creeks, rivers and lakes with neonicotinoid insecticides, with residue levels in the low μg/L (ppb) range. At least two main areas of concern can be identified: reduced capacity for decomposition of organic debris by aquatic organisms and starvation of insectivores and other vertebrate fauna that depend on invertebrates as a major or only food source.

For the past number of years, bat activity has been declining in Cape Breton and last year was no different. Since 2013, ACAP Cape Breton has monitored bat activity on the island. The organization recently wrapped up its fourth year of monitoring and has found a continued decline in bat activity in 2016. The continued decline is due to white nose syndrome, which is a fungal infection that attacks bats while they hibernate. It wakes them frequently from their slumber, leading to death from exposure and starvation.

After the disappearance of sparrows from the country’s urban landscape, the focus has now turned to the population of the common Indian house crow. Paul R. Greenough, professor of Modern Indian History and Community and Behavioural Health, University of Iowa, the U.S., who is studying the decline of common Indian house crows or Corvus splendens, delivered two talks during his visit to Mysuru last month.

Most of New Zealand's native freshwater species are at risk of extinction as water quality faces "serious pressures", a Government report says. The report by the Ministry for the Environment and Statistics New Zealand, titled Our fresh water environment 2017, found nearly three quarters of native freshwater fish species are threatened by or at risk of extinction, as well as a third of native freshwater invertebrates and a third of native freshwater plants. It found nitrogen levels were worsening at more than half of the measured sites.

In the early 2000s, Italian beekeepers began to report bee mortality events linked to maize sowing. Evidence pointed to three neonicotinoids (imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiamethoxam) and a phenylpyrazole (fipronil) used for seed dressing that were dispersed in the environment during sowing. Following these events and based on the precautionary principle, in September 2008, the Italian Ministry of Health suspended these four active ingredients as maize seed dressing.

Once sighted in the thousands, the Blue-tailed bee-eater is a sparsely spotted bird these days. Bird watchers and photographers say their numbers have significantly declined from thousands to a few hundreds in the last five years. In South India, the tiny beauty is endemic to Chandagala, a village on the banks of River Cauvery and close to the historic town of Srirangapatna in Mandya district. The Blue-tailed bee-eater (Merops philippinus) is migratory by nature. The bird is found in peninsular parts of the country.

The cod isn't so sacred in New England anymore. The fish-and-chips staple was once a critical piece of New England's fishing industry, but catch is plummeting to all-time lows in the region. In Maine, which is home to the country's second-largest Atlantic cod fishery, the dwindling catch has many wondering if cod fishing is a thing of the past. "It's going to be more and more difficult for people to make this work," said Maggie Raymond, executive director of the Associated Fisheries of Maine. State records say 2016 was historically bad for cod fishing in Maine.