Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 5 hrs ago
Common Chinese songbirds lost nearly half their genetic diversity in 50 years
Sixty-two songbird species in southwest China lost nearly half their genetic diversity in about 50 years, a study found.
Researchers at the Kunming Institute of Zoology compared DNA from birds collected in the Gaoligong Mountains in the 1960s and 1970s with samples taken there since 2000.
Across the species, genetic diversity fell by an average of 43% to 49%, though the losses varied.
All 62 species are classed as Least Concern, the lowest category of extinction risk.
Genetic diversity gives a population more ways to adapt when conditions change, and the researchers linked habitat fragmentation to birds becoming isolated in smaller groups.
The study covered only songbirds in one mountain range, and the team said global population estimates may not reflect local numbers.
A study found that 62 common songbird species in southwestern China lost an average of 43% to 49% of their genetic diversity over about 50 years.
All 62 species are classified as Least Concern, the lowest level of extinction risk.
The researchers compared DNA from birds collected in the 1960s and 1970s with DNA from birds sampled in the same mountains since 2000.
The study found that more abundant species lost more genetic diversity, contrary to the researchers’ expectations.
The researchers sampled only songbirds in the Gaoligong Mountains, so the findings do not cover other regions or bird groups.
- Who
- Researchers including Ri Liu and Feng Dong at the Kunming Institute of Zoology.
- What
- A study found that 62 songbird species lost an average of 43% to 49% of their genetic diversity in about 50 years.
- When
- The study compared birds collected in the 1960s and 1970s with birds sampled since 2000. It was published on 2 November 2026.
- Where
- The Gaoligong Mountains of southwestern China.
- Why
- The study links the losses to habitat being cleared and fragmented. The article says fragmentation can isolate bird populations.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Researchers collected birds whose DNA was later used in the comparison.
Researchers sampled birds in the same mountains for comparison.
Earth.com published its report on the study.
- Species studied
- 62 songbird species
- Average loss
- 43% to 49% of genetic diversity in about 50 years
- Population-wide variation loss
- Average 48.8%; range 18.1% to 77.2%
- Variation within a bird
- Average 42.9%; range 21.8% to 80%
- Study location
- Gaoligong Mountains, southwestern China
- Conservation status
- All 62 species listed as Least Concern
What people are saying
We expected large populations to buffer against genetic erosion
Instead, we found the opposite: the more abundant a species was, the more genetic diversity it lost over the past five decades.
So the very species we assumed were safest turn out to be experiencing the heaviest genetic erosion