A new bird app developed by a group of scientists from the University of Queensland might be the solution to prevent the further extinction of some species.
The application is designed to help the researchers apply effective conservation measures for the affected animals.
Bird App For Birds' Protection
According to a report by Science Daily, the Bird Language Diversity web app will be a huge help for scientists who are studying birds across the globe.
This application can assist them in relating the spoken language in a particular region in the context of surveying unique bird species, including the migratory and threatened birds.
Dr. Pablo Negret, one of the researchers from the University of Queensland, said that the team has already analyzed over 10,000 species of birds. Out of these numbers, only 1,587 species consist of 10 or more languages spoken in select areas.
He adds that the valuable information about the birds can be distributed across various global languages. He also notes that these details can get lost in translation, and these could further compromise how the scientists implement methods to conserve them.
"Take the common pochard bird for example; it is classified as vulnerable and spans 108 countries in Europe, Russia, Asia and north Africa, where a total of 75 official languages are spoken.The survival of the common pochard, and so many other species, depends on effective collaboration and policy agreements among people with diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds," Negret continued.
According to him, the app can simply choose a specific language for the users who want to view various species within a language zone. Moreover, you could establish a quick comparison regarding the impact of a language on a species.
Related Article: Warblr App Can Identify Birds By Listening To Their Singing
Bird App is Just the Start
Aside from birds, the app might extend its service to cater other animals in the future, including mammals and amphibians. It could even be applicable to the study of plants as to how language barriers affect the study of many species in different nations, per the study's co-author Dr. Tatsuya Amano.
Tamano adds that they are looking forward to improving science communication for the various languages on the planet. It should be noted that the scientists are aware of the existing problem, particularly the poor communication.
He continues that over the past years, the problem has been continuously addressed by the other experts. So far, it's showing signs of improvement, and the bird app proves that it could still go a long way.
It only shows that the community is adapting to the changes when it comes to language barriers. Amano says that several academic journals have eyed being language inclusive by modifying some of the existing policies.
To access the study entitled "Language barriers in global bird conservation," visit PLOS One for more information.
If you want to join more activities related to bird conservation, you could check NSTA's post about the eBird Project.
Read Also: Earth Day 2022: Here's When and What to Do During the Event
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Joseph Henry
