Bachman's Wobbler
Vermivora bachmanii
Created by Megen Mecham and Kenzie McKeever
Discovery to Extinction
The Bachman´s Warbler was discovered in 1832 near Charleston, South Carolina and the last confirmed sighting was in 1961 in Charleston, South Carolina. No other sightings have been confirmed or documented leaving most ornithologists to believe it´s extinct.
Bio-geographical Data
They were said to have been found in Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, and South Carolina, in the USA. As they are migratory birds, in winter they were found in Cuba and sometimes Florida. It is not confirmed that they are extinct. If they are only critically endangered, then their population is estimated to be less than 50 individuals. Their population has always fluctuated with the availability of their habitats and the disruption of them. In the Mid-19th century the population likely rose due to the human population moving to the valleys. Between 1900 and 1940, their population began to decline to the point it is now.
Causes of Extinction
No one is entirely sure what definitively caused the extinction of the Bachman's Warbler, but multiple sources have listed the clearing of their wintering habitat in Cuba as well as the destruction of their habitats in the US for agricultural use and by hurricanes as a clear culprit.
What Could've Been Done
The Bachman's Warbler could have been saved or may possibly still be saved by saving their habitat. The most injury for the birds have come from wetland drainage the clearing of canebrakes. If this action is prevented, decreased, and reversed then there is a chance at saving this species if they are not all ready extinct.
Bibliography
"Species." Bachman's Warbler (Vermivora bachmanii). Web. 18 Feb. 2016. <http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=9084>.
"Bachman's Warbler - Encyclopedia of Arkansas." Bachman's Warbler - Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Web. 18 Feb. 2016. <http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=8336>.
United States. National Park Service. "Bachman's Warbler Searches at Congaree National Park." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2016. Web. 18 Feb. 2016. <http://www.nps.gov/rlc/ogbfrec/bachmans.htm>.