http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/tech/2007/mar/12/031203672.htmlTHE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - Worldwide efforts to protect endangered waterbirds are falling short as industrial and urban development eat away at their habitats, and hunting and pollution take their toll, according to a book released Monday.
"Despite global conservation efforts, waterbirds are being sidelined by economic development," according to three groups that edited "Waterbirds Around the World," which includes data covering 162 countries and 614 species.
In January, a global survey called the Waterbird Population Estimate found that 44 percent of the world's 900 waterbird species numbers have fallen in the past five years, while 34 percent were stable, and 17 percent were rising. In the last such survey in 2002, 41 percent of waterbird populations worldwide were found to be decreasing.
"Waterbirds Around the World" is based on papers presented at a 2004 conference in Edinburgh, Scotland, and updated since then. It paints a picture of largely positive progress in Europe and North America, but ongoing problems in other parts of the world.
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