Hummingbirds are in danger of extinction due to witchcraft and the promise of love on Valentine’s Day
In Mexico, the popularity of using the tiny birds in rituals is one factor threatening 39 of the 57 species that inhabit the country
What lovers like to express most of all on Valentine’s Day is eternal love. They do it with flowers, letters and songs. But for some, letters and flowers are not enough, and they resort to less orthodox methods of romantic conquest, such as witchcraft. In Mexico, a country full of symbolism and magical realism, hummingbirds — long associated with good luck when they cross your path and flutter around you — are captured and then “prepared” to reach the heart of the loved one. The shocking practice has become popular in recent years. It consists of carrying the small bird, dead and dry, inside your shirt pocket. This, we are assured, will let us find a partner for life. But so far, the only objectively measurable thing it has achieved is to put 39 of the 57 species that inhabit Mexican territory at risk of extinction, according to data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
There are 57 species of hummingbirds in Mexico, although due to a significant lack of studies the number of species could reach up to 67. These data are shared in the bimonthly bulletin of the National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO). The tiny birds have been shrouded in mysticism since pre-Hispanic times; their iridescent plumage and rapid flapping of their wings — up to 80 times per second — were a symbol of good luck or a good omen.
In environmental matters, the positive impact that hummingbirds have as pollinators stands out. “When taking nectar, hummingbirds collect pollen from flowers on their heads, which they in turn deposit on other flowers, thus playing a key role in the biology of the reproduction of many plant species,” reports the CONABIO. Another characteristic of the species is that at least 14 of the 57 known species are endemic; that is, they can only live in specific habitats. It is also the only bird that can fly backwards or suspend still in the same place in the air.
María del Coro Arizmendi, a biologist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and an expert on these birds, together with Humberto Berlanga, coordinator of the Conservation of North American Birds, describe in their book Hummingbirds of Mexico and North America what the current problems are. “All hummingbird species are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which includes all species that, while not currently necessarily in danger of extinction, could reach that situation unless trade is subject to strict regulation and effective control.”
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