ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — U.S. wildlife managers have set aside areas in seven states as habitat that's critical to the survival of a rare songbird that migrates each year from Central and South America to breeding grounds in Mexico and the United States. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Tuesday made final the habitat designation for the western yellow-billed cuckoo. It covers about 467 square miles along hundreds of miles of rivers and streams. Most breeding in the U.S. occurs in Arizona and New Mexico, but the habitat designation also includes portions of California, Colorado, Utah, Texas and Idaho.
![Rare Songbird](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e043b70/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1688+0+156/resize/1280x720!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F3e%2Faa%2Fe74c3d00485494a5fd4af09a4976%2Fap21111551937404.jpg)
AP
FILE - In this July 8, 2019, file photo provided by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, shows a yellow-billed cuckoo. U.S. wildlife managers have set aside vast areas across several states as habitat critical to the survival of a rare songbird that migrates each year from Central and South America to breeding grounds in Mexico and the United States. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the final habitat designation for the western yellow-billed cuckoo on Tuesday, April 20, 2021. (Peter Pearsall/United States Fish and Wildlife Service via AP, File)
![Rare Songbird](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e043b70/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1688+0+156/resize/1280x720!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F3e%2Faa%2Fe74c3d00485494a5fd4af09a4976%2Fap21111551937404.jpg)
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