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What is the most common bird in the world? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Peewit
- Start date
chris butterworth
aka The Person Named Above
Got to be Chicken but, I think the phrasing should be "What is the commonest WILD bird in the world?" Even then you've got to qualify 'commonest'. Isn't it wonderful to be such a pedant? :t:
Chris
Lost me there, I'm afraid. Qualify how?
Richard Klim
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According to BirdLife, the population of Rock Dove Columba livia (including Feral Pigeon) is estimated as c.260,000,000 individuals (2004).
But the House Sparrow Passer domesticus population is estimated as > c.540,000,000 individuals (also 2004).
Stuart Matthews
Well-known member
Most numerous or most widespread?
To me "commonest"--without qualification--implies "most abundant", not "most widespread" but maybe I'm just being pedantic again (pedantry is bred in my bones, I'm afraid
).swankyspoon
Well-known member
What about the European Starling? Wouldn't it be high on this list? Or maybe the Red-billed Quelea?
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Richard Klim
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- Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris: > c.310,000,000 individuals.
- Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea: "not quantified, but described as possibly the most abundant bird in the world (Fry and Keith 2004)".
PS. Red-billed Quelea: peak post-breeding population estimated at c.1,500,000,000 individuals (HBW).
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Stuart Matthews
Well-known member
I don't think you're being pedantic, you've just assumed that anyone will interpret 'commonest' without qualification in the same way that you meant it, which isn't always the case.
If you'd asked what was the most abundant bird in the world, the answer is (I think) the red-billed quelea. Billions of them, but are they common? They only live in one (vast) place, and haven't spread to other areas or continents in the way a Cattle Egret has done, for example.
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Fozzybear
Ich bin ein Vogelbeobachter
Holy smokes! Which to me makes it all the more concerning that UK Sparrows are suffering given how prolific they are worldwide - if a successful species like this is in steep decline then it seems that something is seriously wrong.
I reckon that makes the colony of Sparrows in my garden approximately 0.0000055% of the world population. :-O
new forest birder
pete
feral Pigeon??? t has to be?!!!
Phil Carter
Well-known member
An Essex bird. Common is an understatement!
Phil
Phil
new forest birder
pete
hahaha very funny!
Mysticete
Well-known member
I can believe House Sparrow (stateside at least) is the most abundant. On the Christmas bird counts, within Laramie, House Sparrow numbers in my count circle are always greater than Pigeon counts. If anything, given the large flocks I encounter, I am probably underestimating, not overestimating, the population.
bkrownd
Well-known member
"Within Laramie" - those counts will be biased if they're near human habitation. I seldom encounter house sparrows during my bird surveys (approximately never), since I spend time in the wilderness far from buildings. They aren't even the most numerous bird in my yard. My largest counts on the mainland are almost always either robins or whatever waterfowl are migrating through at a given moment, but that's also a bit biased by places I go. House sparrows are usually far down the list. That quelea bird is probably the answer.
