WASHINGTON — As the world gets warmer, the Baltimore oriole will no longer be found in Maryland. The Mississippi kite will move north, east and pretty much out of its namesake state. Those are some conclusions in a National Audubon Society report that looks at potential effects of global warming on birds by the year 2080. The report by Gary Langham, the society's chief scientist, gives the most comprehensive projections yet of what is likely to happen to the 588 species of birds in North America.
It says that in a few decades, 126 bird species will have a much smaller area to live in, which the society says will make them endangered. Another 188 species will lose more than half their natural range but find new areas — and be confronted with different food and soil, bird experts said. Backyard regulars like the American robin and the blue jay will appear in even more places, the report says. And some birds that people don’t necessarily like — such as the turkey vulture and the American crow — will expand their ranges tremendously.
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