By Jared Teutsch, Executive Director

Millions of people enjoy watching birds every day. From those who enjoy birds at their backyard feeders to those who attend birding field trips in our parks and greenspaces, to the more hardcore birders who travel the U.S. and the world adding to their “life lists”, birdwatching is accessible to everyone, virtually everywhere. 

At Georgia Audubon, we believe birds are a catalyst for conservation. They are also in trouble. A recently released study published in the journal Science revealed that nearly three billion birds —or one in four birds— have disappeared from our landscape in the past 50 years. Habitat loss and degradation are two of the leading causes for this decline. Nowhere is this more evident than in metro Atlanta. Not only are we losing habitat at an alarming rate, but the habitat that we still have is being degraded rapidly, losing the ability to support the full life cycle of many bird species. The decline of even common species, including our state bird, the Brown Thrasher, indicates a general shift in our ecosystems’ ability to support basic birdlife.

Improving our landscapes, both at home and across the city, is the most effective way to provide quality habitat for birds and other pollinators. And the most effective way to improve landscapes for birds is to remove exotic, invasive species and replace them with native plants. Birds and native plants go together thanks to millions of years of coevolution. Native plants produce fruits and flowers on which birds feed, and, in return, birds spread the plant’s seeds and pollen far and wide, supporting an entire ecosystem. It’s a win-win.

Native plants are also important hosts for protein-rich native insects, like caterpillars, which nesting birds need to feed their growing chicks. More than 96 percent of land birds feed insects and spiders to their chicks. In fact, a single nest of Carolina Chickadee babies will need as many as…