Ithaca, NY— In a new study published in the journal Ecosystem Services, researchers from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, and the Wildlife Conservation Society examined how protecting areas valuable for human needs — like clean water, flood control, and carbon storage — could simultaneously benefit bird populations across the United States.
Researchers used data that mapped 11 ecosystem services alongside observations of birds from the Cornell Lab's eBird Status and Trends project to determine how well areas that provide ecosystem services for humans also support bird populations.
Said lead author Dr. Rachel Neugarten, formerly of Cornell and now at WCS: "We all know that nature provides us with many benefits - biodiversity, climate regulation, recreation, and many others - but until now, we haven't been able to demonstrate where those benefits coincide in space. Given the limited resources for conservation, this information is critical for helping decision-makers protect our natural heritage. The paper shows that win-win-wins for biodiversity, climate, and people are possible but not guaranteed."
The study found that 75% of forest-dwelling birds were well represented by ecosystem service priority areas. Areas with high co-benefits include the Appalachian Mountains, the southeastern U.S., New England, the Ozarks, and the Sierra and Cascade mountain ranges.
The team further examined how well these areas supported species whose populations have declined by 50% or more in the last 50 years as reported in the 2025 U.S. State of the Birds report, known as Tipping Point species. Among the Tipping Point species that occur in forests, many of them were well-represented in ecosystem service priority areas. For example, 91% of the U.S. Cerulean Warbler population, a declining species, was found in areas that support the forestry industry and store large amounts of carbon.
"This study is especially timely, given recent reports of continued, if not worsening, population declines in North American birds," says Amanda Rodewald, co-author and faculty director of the Center for Avian Population Studies at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "Now more than ever, we must find ways to conserve birds as part of broader efforts to protect the environment – in this case, safeguarding the ecosystem services that support human health and well-being."
But the authors point out that other Tipping Point species as well as birds found in aridlands in the Southwest or in wetlands were less well represented in areas that supported ecosystem services, highlighting the need for careful planning to maximize potential co-benefits.
"While win-win situations do exist, we should be careful not to generalize about biodiversity and ecosystem service benefits," Neugarten adds. "With limited resources and competing demands for land, we need data-driven approaches to achieve multiple conservation goals simultaneously."
This work was supported by the National Science Foundation (Graduate Research Fellowship DGE-2139899), the Cornell University Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
